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Press Release

Memphis Man Sentenced to 120 Months for Bank, Business Robberies

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Tennessee

Memphis, TN – A Memphis man has been sentenced to 120 months for robbing a First Tennessee Bank and Family Dollar Store. Edward L. Stanton III, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the sentencing today.

According to court information, on March 30, 2014, Marchello Moore, 34, entered the Family Dollar on Knight Arnold Road and posed as a customer. Moore approached the counter and acted as if he was going to purchase an item. When the clerk opened the cash register, Moore pulled out a handgun. The clerk managed to run to the back of the store and press the panic button. Moore was able to take approximately $50 from the cash register. He subsequently fled the scene in a gold Dodge Durango.

On April 7, 2014, Moore robbed a First Tennessee Bank on Kirby Center Cove. According to the bank teller, Moore reportedly approached a bank teller’s station and presented a note that read, "I have a gun/Give me all your money/No dye pack." The bank teller complied with the demand and provided Moore with approximately $1,995 from the cash drawer. Moore then fled the scene in the same gold Dodge Durango.

On April 10, 2014, Memphis Police Department (MPD) officers conducted a traffic stop on the gold Dodge Durango operated by Moore and placed him in custody for the Family Dollar robbery. Subsequent to his arrest, an inventory of the vehicle resulted in the discovery of a Cobra .380-caliber pistol in an air filter underneath the hood. During his post-arrest statement, Moore admitted that he also robbed the First Tennessee Bank.

In September 2015, Moore pled guilty to one count of bank robbery, one count of committing a robbery that affected interstate commerce, and one count of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

On Friday, January 8, 2016, U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman sentenced Moore to 120 months in federal prison.

This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Safe Streets Task Force, a collective comprised of federal, state and local law enforcement personnel. The MPD investigated this case on behalf of the Safe Streets Task Force. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Dean DeCandia prosecuted this case on the government’s behalf.

Updated January 8, 2016