Ardmore Bank Robber Sentenced To 147 Months In Federal Prison

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Zachary Gage Pebley, age 22, of MaComb, Oklahoma was sentenced to 147 months’ imprisonment, and 3 years’ supervised release for Bank Robbery, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2113(a) and 2113(d), and for Use, Carry, and Brandish a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(ii). Pebley’s jury trial began on January 21, 2020 and concluded on January 22, 2020 with a guilty verdict. The verdict was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Ardmore Police Department. Sentencing occurred following the completion of a presentence report.

Evidence presented at trial proved to the jury that on October 15, 2019, the defendant entered the Bank of the West in Ardmore, Oklahoma wearing a black hat, sunglasses and a white bandana over his face. He approached and pointed a gun at a bank teller demanding that money be placed into a pillowcase. After receiving the money the defendant fled the bank, and within minutes was pursued and detained briefly by a bystander who had seen him running from the area of the bank. Shortly thereafter, officers with the Ardmore Police Department located the defendant hiding in a back yard and arrested him.

United States Attorney Brian J. Kuester said, “Alert victims, a willing bystander, rapid response by the Ardmore Police Department, and their thorough investigation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation led to swift justice against the defendant in just over six months following his crime. This investigation and prosecution was a result of teamwork at its finest – local and federal law enforcement agencies working together with the communities they serve and protect.”

“Armed bank robbery is a serious violent crime which is aggressively investigated, prosecuted and punished," said Melissa Godbold, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Oklahoma City Field Office. "The quick intervention by a good Samaritan led to the apprehension of Mr. Pebley by the Ardmore Police Department. This is an example of how the FBI, our law enforcement partners, and Oklahomans work together to defend their community against those who commit violent crime."

The Honorable Ronald A. White, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys Dean Burris and Ryan Conway represented the United States. The defendant will remain in custody pending transportation to the designated federal facility at which the non-parolable sentence will be served.