Indianapolis Man Sentenced to 32 Years for Local Business Robberies

Last of Four Men Sentenced

April 14, 2010 - INDIANAPOLIS — Brandon Banks, 25, Indianapolis, was sentenced to 32 years in prison today by U.S. District Judge Larry J. McKinney following his guilty plea to two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence. This case was the result of a lengthy investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD).

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and the ATF investigated a series of armed robberies by multiple persons at local business establishments during April and May 2007. Banks pled guilty to the May, 2007 armed robberies of a Marathon gas station on W. 56th St. and a Meijer grocery on E. Washington St.

All three of Bank’s accomplices also pled guilty and were previously sentenced. During separate proceedings in early 2008, Judge McKinney sentenced Stephan Wilson, 31, and Wallace Powell, 27, both of Indianapolis, to 12 years imprisonment for their roles. Wilson pled guilty to the Marathon gas station robbery and Powell pled guilty to the April, 2007 robbery of Gas America located on Lafayette Road. On March 12, 2010, Judge McKinney sentenced Jeffrey Roundtree, 24, Milwaukee to 25 years in prison upon his guilty pleas to the April, 2007 robberies of the Auto Zone on Moeller Road and the LaQuinta Inn on North Post Road.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Rinka and Bradley Shepard, who prosecuted the case for the government, Judge McKinney also imposed five years supervised release following Banks’ and Roundtree’s release from prison. Powell and Wilson will each spend three years on supervised release upon release. Banks, Roundtree, Powell, and Wilson were also ordered to pay in excess of $6,500 in restitution to the various businesses.

Under present federal guidelines, each defendant must serve approximately 85% of the imposed sentence before he is eligible for release. There is no parole in the federal system.