Chantilly, Virginia Man Sentenced to 51 Months in Prison for D.C. and Virginia Bank Robberies

WASHINGTON, D.C.—A 35-year-old Chantilly, Virginia man, Bruce Wayne Higgins, Jr., was sentenced today to 51 months in prison for committing bank robberies in Washington, D.C., and Arlington, Virginia, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Joseph Persichini, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy L. Lanier.

Higgins was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia by the Honorable Colleen Kollar-Kotelly. Following his release from prison, Higgins will have to serve an additional three years of supervised release. Higgins was also ordered to pay restitution to the banks in the amount of $3,164.

The defendant pleaded guilty to the two bank robberies on June 19, 2009. According to the government’s factual proffer at the plea hearing, on February 24, 2009, at approximately 10:35 a.m., the defendant walked into the SunTrust Bank, located at 410 Rhode Island Avenue, NE, Washington, D.C. A bank employee gave the defendant a pen, and he wrote something at the check writing table. The defendant then approached the teller counter and passed a note, which read, “HAND ME $ NOW 20 $ QUICK GUN IN SUIT POCKET KEEP QUIET OR YOUR DEAD.” The defendant then placed his right hand in his jacket in a way that made the teller believe that the defendant was reaching for a weapon. The teller complied with the defendant’s demand and gave him approximately $1065 from the teller drawer. The defendant then fled the bank.

Four days later, on February 28, 2009, the defendant went into the SunTrust Bank, located at 901 North Glebe Road, in Arlington, Virginia, at approximately 9:40 a.m. The defendant approached the teller counter and passed a note that read “GUN IN COAT HAND ME 20$ NOW OR YOU HURT.” The defendant told the teller: “Give me the money. I have a gun. I’ll shoot you.” The defendant then placed his right hand in his jacket in a way that made the teller believe that the defendant was reaching for a gun. The teller complied with the defendant’s demand and gave him $2,099 from the teller drawer. The defendant then left the bank.

In announcing today’s sentence, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillips, FBI Assistant Director in Charge Persichini, and MPD Chief Lanier commended the investigative work of the joint FBI/MPD Bank Robbery Task Force. They also commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Brooker, who investigated and prosecuted the case.