Hogsett Announces Indianapolis Man Charged in String of Bank Robberies

INDIANAPOLIS—Joseph H. Hogsett, United States Attorney, announced that Nicolas McEwen, 32, Indianapolis was charged today by criminal complaint with six bank robberies, the last of which occurred at 6:40 p.m. yesterday at the Teachers Credit Union located inside the Meijer Department Store on East 96 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Safe Streets Task Force and the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

The complaint alleges that McEwen was identified as a suspect in several bank robberies in the Indianapolis area. Investigators followed McEwen and eventually McEwen went inside a Teachers Credit Union branch bank located in the Meijer Department Store on East 96 Indianapolis. McEwen was arrested after robbing the TCU bank. Following his arrest McEwen agreed to talk to authorities after being advised of his rights. McEwen admitted to the TCU bank robbery and seven other bank robberies.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Winfield D. Ong, who is prosecuting the case for the government, McEwen faces a maximum of 120 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine. Following a hearing held on June 22, 2011, McEwen was ordered detained in the Marion County Jail pending disposition of this case before a U.S. Magistrate Judge.

A criminal complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.