Federal Grand Jury Indicts Man for Robbing Wells Fargo Bank
| U.S. Attorney’s Office December 15, 2011 |
LUBBOCK, TX—A federal grand jury returned an indictment late yesterday charging Allen Azaryan, 40, most recently of Burbank, California, with one count of bank robbery in connection with the Wells Fargo Bank robbery last week, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
The indictment alleges that on December 8, 2011, Azaryan robbed the Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., located at 1500 Broadway, in Lubbock, Texas. Azaryan, who was arrested by officers with the Lubbock Police Department within minutes of the robbery, remains in custody. It is expected that he will appear in federal court in Lubbock next week for an initial appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge.
An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty. However, if convicted, Azaryan faces a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The case is being investigated by the FBI and the Lubbock Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey R. Haag, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Lubbock, is in charge of the prosecution.