Two Bank Robbers Indicted by Federal Grand Jury
| U.S. Attorney’s Office May 25, 2012 |
NEW ORLEANS, LA—Walter Joseph Porter, III, age 36, and Brian Keith Hayes, age 33, both residents of New Orleans, Louisiana, were charged yesterday in a five-count indictment by a federal grand jury for conspiracy to commit bank robbery, bank robbery, and violations of the Federal Gun Control Act, announced U.S. Attorney Jim Letten.
The indictment charges both Porter and Hayes with conspiracy to commit bank robbery and for committing two armed bank robberies: the first occurring on July 6, 2011 in New Orleans; the second on August 26, 2011 in Metairie.
According to the indictment, on July 6, 2011, Porter and Hayes, along with a third robber, entered the CapitalOne Bank branch located on Elysian Fields and took an amount of United States currency through the use of force and intimidation. On August 26, 2011, Porter and Hayes, along with a third robber, entered the CapitalOne Bank branch located on North Causeway in Metairie and took an amount of United States currency through the use of force and intimidation. The indictment also charges both Porter and Hayes with brandishing their firearms in the commission of their armed robberies.
As charged in the indictment both Porter and Hayes face the following terms of imprisonment:
Count one, conspiracy to commit armed bank robbery, carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.
Counts two and four, armed bank robbery, each carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years.
Count three, use of a firearm in commission of armed bank robbery, carries a mandatory minimum term of seven years consecutive to any other sentence of imprisonment imposed and a maximum sentence of life.
Count four, if a second conviction of use of a firearm in commission of armed bank robbery, is a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years consecutive to any other sentence of imprisonment imposed and a maximum sentence of life.
Each count of conviction would also expose each defendant to a maximum fine of $250,000. If convicted on all counts, both Porter and Hayes face a minimum term of imprisonment of 32 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life, a maximum fine of $1,250,000, and five years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
U.S. Attorney Letten reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendants must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New Orleans Police Department, and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tony Gordon Sanders.