Man Sentenced to 180 Months in Prison for Bank Robbery

Rock Island, Ill. – A Chicago, Illinois, man, Eric A. Boyd, 55, of the 700 block of Chicago, Illinois, has been sentenced to 180 months in the Bureau of Prisons, to be served consecutive to a U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois sentence, followed by a 5-year term of supervised release, for armed bank robbery.

At the sentencing hearing, the government presented evidence that, on the morning of May 1, 2023, Boyd entered a Chase Bank in Moline, Illinois, wearing a mask and carrying a duffle bag. Boyd brandished an apparent firearm, indicated he had a bomb, and ordered employees and customers to “get on the ground”. Boyd then placed the duffel bag on the counter and directed bank employees to fill the bag with currency.  

Also at the hearing, U.S. District Court Judge James E. Shadid found that, in January of 2021, Boyd was released early from a previous prison sentence for multiple armed bank robberies, and that at the time of this offense he was on supervised release from the Bureau of Prisons. Judge Shadid also noted that Boyd’s extensive criminal history indicated he was a risk to reoffend, that prior prison sentences had not deterred Boyd from engaging in new crimes, and that a lengthy sentence was necessary to protect the community from further harm.

Boyd was arrested on May 5, 2023, and has remained in the custody of the United States Marshals Service since his arrest. Boyd pleaded guilty on September 19, 2023.

The statutory penalties for armed bank robbery are up to 25 years in prison. 

Moline Police Department investigated the case with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office. Supervisory Assistant U.S Attorney John Mehochko represented the government in the prosecution.

The case against Boyd is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.