District Man Sentenced to Nine-Year Prison Term in February 2010 Bank Robbery
Defendant Acted as Getaway Driver

WASHINGTON—Damien Small, 29, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to nine years in prison on charges stemming from a bank robbery that took place in February 2010, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., James W. McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

Small pled guilty in December 2010 to one count of bank robbery and aiding and abetting. He was sentenced on May 10, 2011 by the Honorable John D. Bates in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Judge Bates ordered that Small be placed on three years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. Small also was ordered to pay $7,097 in restitution.

According to the government’s evidence, on the morning of February 2, 2010, Small drove his accomplice, Derrick Benson, to the Bank of Georgetown, in the 1300 block of I Street NW. Small parked his vehicle near the bank, and he and Benson monitored police patrol activity in the area. After the patrol units drove away, Benson entered the bank and demanded money from a teller who he threatened to kill. While Benson was inside the bank, Small pulled his vehicle around the corner from the bank and waited for Benson.

Benson stole $7,097 from the bank before fleeing in a waiting vehicle driven by Small. Benson, 33, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced in March 2011 to more than eight years in prison for his role in this crime and other offenses.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director McJunkin, and Chief Lanier commended the exceptional investigative work of the special agents from the FBI’s Washington Field Office, as well as MPD Detective Elmer Baylor, and the entire joint FBI/MPD Violent Crimes Task Force. They also praised the work of the FBI Physical Scientist/Forensic Examiner who assisted in the investigation. Lastly, they praised the efforts of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which assisted with asset forfeiture issues, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys David B. Kent and Frederick W. Yette, who prosecuted this matter.