Avery, Texas Man Sentenced for 2015 Northeast Texas Crime Spree

TEXARKANA, Texas – A 50 year old Avery, Texas man was sentenced to federal prison for crimes he committed in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston today.

Bobby Wayne Lance was sentenced to a total of 1054 months today during a sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder, III.

According to information presented in court, Lance robbed a Bowie County convenience store, a Lamar County movie theater and a Franklin County bank in a crime spree that spread over several days in November 2015. After Lance was identified as a suspect, deputies from multiple jurisdictions, along with the FBI, searched Lance’s home, where they recovered two bags of cash containing “bait bills” that had been photocopied by the bank to be used in the event of a robbery. In addition to the money, the search also led to the discovery of a loaded revolver, recovered from a shed behind Lance’s home. In his truck, officers found receipts for over $73,000 for past due bills that had been paid in the days between the thefts.

Lance was convicted of violating the Hobbs Act for the robbery of the Movies 8 in Paris, Texas on November 8, 2015 and the robbery of the Carter RV Convenience Store in Dekalb, Texas on November 14, 2015. He was also convicted of bank robbery for the hold-up of the First National Bank in Mount Vernon, Texas on November 17, 2015 and a carjacking that occurred that same date in relation to the bank robbery. He was also convicted of four counts of use or carrying of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, in relation to all the robberies.

“This is a great day for the citizens of this community,” said Brit Featherston, Acting U.S. Attorney, “Lance thought he was a real life Clyde Barrow, minus the “Bonnie.” This very appropriate and just sentence, of over eighty-seven years, will insure that Lance will never harm another person in our community.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Paris Police Department, Texarkana, Texas Police Department, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Red River County Sheriff’s Office, Bowie County Sheriff and the Texas Rangers. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan Locker, Robert Wells, and Jonathan Ross.