Edwardsville Resident Sentenced for Bank Robberies in Lebanon and O'Fallon

Marcus J. Thornton, 38, of Edwardsville, Illinois, was sentenced in federal court today to 19 years in prison, for bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Steven D. Weinhoeft, announced. The sentence includes a five-year term of supervised release immediately following Thornton’s imprisonment. Thornton had previously pled guilty to these charges on March 22, 2018 and April 27, 2018.

Documents filed in the U.S. District Court establish that on October 13, 2016, Thornton entered the Regions Bank located at 107 E. Schuetz Street, Lebanon, Illinois, and demanded money from bank tellers. Thornton took a total of $13,710.90 in United States currency before fleeing in a vehicle.

On February 9, 2017, Thornton entered the U.S. Bank located at 400 South Lincoln Avenue, O’Fallon, Illinois, brandished a silver and black semi-automatic handgun, and demanded money from bank tellers. Bank tellers gave $10,720 in United States currency to

Thornton, who then put the U.S. currency into a white plastic bag, and fled in a vehicle.

The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Illinois State Police, and Lebanon and O’Fallon Police Departments. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Daniel T. Kapsak and James G. Piper, Jr.