Lumberton Armed Bank Robber Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison

RALEIGH – Robert J. Higdon, Jr., the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, announces that Chief United States District Terrence W. Boyle, sentenced DEMETRIS SEAN ROBINSON, a/k/a “Bo Bo,” 27, of Whiteville, North Carolina, to life imprisonment plus 10 years to be served consecutively, followed by 5 years of supervised released.  ROBINSON was ordered to pay $40,302 in restitution.

On May 1, 2019, ROBINSON was convicted following a jury trial of Armed Bank Robbery and Aiding and Abetting, Discharging a Firearm during a Crime of Violence, and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.  On November 14, 2019, Robinson’s co-defendant, DAQUAN MADRID PRIDGEN, was sentenced by Chief Judge Boyle to Life imprisonment, plus ten years’ imprisonment to be served consecutively.  Robinson’s other two co-defendants, JERAMIE ROSS VAUGHN and RASHAD DEVONTE YOUNG, a/k/a “Rep,” each received 180 months imprisonment.

The evidence presented at trial showed that sometime in late 2017, the four men began planning to rob a bank and gathered high-quality masks to wear during the robbery, and several firearms, including a rifle, shotgun, and two handguns.  On January 23, 2018, the four men travelled to Lumberton and cased banks before deciding to rob the PNC Bank.  ROBINSON, PRIDGEN, and YOUNG each brandished firearms and ordered the tellers to hand over money.  A bank employee was also ordered to the bank vault where additional money was taken.  In all, the four men fled the bank with over $40,000 in cash.

Officers of the Lumberton Police Department (LPD) quickly caught up with the robbers and a two-county high-speed chase ensued.  Other law enforcement officers from the Robeson County Sheriff’s Office (RCSO) and the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) also joined the chase.  The defendants drove through residential areas and reached speeds in excess of 90 miles per hour.  At various points in the chase, ROBINSON fired at officers both while the getaway vehicle was in motion and while the vehicle stopped several times.  Several law enforcement vehicles were struck, but there were no injuries to law enforcement. The chase ended when ROBINSON, PRIDGEN, and VAUGHN abandoned the vehicle on the side of the road in Columbus County and fled on foot into the woods.  YOUNG ran on foot when the vehicle stopped at an earlier time.  All four were eventually apprehended and charged.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  Since 2017, the United States Department of Justice has reinvigorated the PSN program and has targeted violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime.

This case is also part of the Take Back North Carolina Initiative of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.  This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices on a sustained basis in those communities to reduce the violence crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.

The FBI, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the Lumberton Police Department, the Robeson County Sheriff’s Office, and the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation of this case.  Assistant United States Attorneys Erin C. Blondel and Robert J. Dodson prosecuted the case for the government.