Porum Resident Pleads Guilty to Bank Robbery

MUSKOGEE, OK—Sheldon J. Sperling, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that JOSHUA ALLEN TONEY, age 24, of Porum, Oklahoma, pled guilty to bank robbery, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2113(a) & 2; and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(c)(1)(A) and 2.

The charges arose from an investigation by the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. TONEY was indicted in December 2009.

Evidence in this case established that on November 23, 2009, TONEY, entered the Bank of Commerce in Keys, Oklahoma through a back door. He brandished a .22 caliber pistol, demanded that all employees close the blinds, and forced them into the bathroom. He left with approximately $31,504.00 in cash.

The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the defendant’s guilty plea and ordered the completion of a presentence report. Sentencing will be scheduled following its completion. TONEY will remain in the custody of the United States Marshal Service pending sentencing.

The statutory range of punishment is up to 20 years’ imprisonment on Count 1 and not less than seven years’ imprisonment on Count 2 to be served consecutively and up to $250,000.00 in fines. A preliminary calculation of the Sentencing Guidelines, projects a sentence of 57-87 months’ imprisonment for bank robbery and an additional seven years in prison for brandishing a firearm during a violent crime.

Assistant United States Attorney Dean Burris represented the United States.