Eugene Man Sentenced to 13 Years in Federal Prison for Seven Armed Bank Robberies
| U.S. Attorney’s Office October 13, 2011 |
EUGENE, OR—Ferrell Lee Brier, 61, of Eugene, Oregon, was sentenced to more than 13 years in federal prison today by Chief U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken. Brier was also ordered to pay $33,422 in restitution to the banks he robbed, and to serve a five year term of supervised release.
On April 14, 2011, Brier pleaded guilty to robbing seven banks in Oregon over an eight-month time span, and to carrying a pistol when robbing the banks. Brier has been held in custody at the Lane County Jail since his arrest on May 3, 2011. The defendant admitted robbing the following banks while armed with a .45 caliber pistol:
- October 14, 2009—Key Bank , 750 Lancaster Drive, NE, Salem
- October 29, 2009—Bank of America, 3803 Center Street, NE, Salem
- December 2, 2009—Bank of America, 15961 Tualatin Sherwood Road, Sherwood
- December 10, 2009—Bank of America, 19181 Willamette Drive, West Linn
- December 22, 2009—U.S. Bank, 340 NE Beacon Drive, Grants Pass
- March 18, 2010—Bank of America, 790 Stevens Street, Medford
- May 3, 2010—Umpqua Bank, 4011 Donald Street, Eugene
During the robberies, Brier would typically give bank tellers a note demanding money. When robbing two of the banks, Brier opened his jacket to reveal the butt of a pistol tucked into his waistband. Eugene police eventually identified Brier as the Umpqua Bank robber and arrested him at the home of an exotic dancer. Police recovered a loaded .45 caliber pistol, a demand note and stolen money. Brier used some of the stolen money to pay for prostitutes and exotic dancers.
Chief U.S. District Judge Aiken imposed a 98-month prison term for the armed robberies and a consecutive 60-month for carrying a firearm during a robbery, for a total of 158 months.
The FBI investigated this case with the assistance of local, county, and state law enforcement agencies in Oregon. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Papagni, with the assistance of Deputy District Attorneys in various Oregon counties.