Getaway Driver Sentenced to More Than Seven Years in Federal Prison on Charges Related to Two 2019 Bank Robberies in Baltimore

 Co-defendants Expected to be Sentenced to Between 12 and 18 years in Federal Prison

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow today sentenced Richard Adams, age 60, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 90 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for aiding and abetting armed bank robbery and aiding and abetting the brandishing of a firearm during a crime of violence, in connection with armed bank robberies committed in Baltimore on January 23 and February 1, 2019.  

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge Jennifer C. Boone of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.

According to Adams’ guilty plea, he served as the getaway driver in connection with two armed bank robberies committed by his two co-defendants, Richard Tingler and David Gollahon.  On January 23, 2019, Adams drove Tingler and Gollahon to a bank in the 3600 block of Boston Street in Baltimore, in a car he had rented two weeks earlier.  The robbers were each armed and wore masks and gloves when they entered the bank.  The robbers told everyone to put their hands up.  Tingler approached the victim teller, pointed his firearm at her, and demanded $100 dollar bills and “loose bills” from the bottom drawer of the till.  Meanwhile, Gollahon held the customers and other bank employees at gunpoint in the lobby area of the bank.  The victim teller handed over the cash and the robbers ran away.  As they ran through a parking lot adjacent to the bank, they accidentally dropped more than $5,000 in cash.  They then got into the gray car driven by Adams, who had been waiting for them, and Adams drove them away from the area. 

On February 1, 2019, Adams drove his co-defendants to a bank located in the 2900 block of O’Donnell Street in Baltimore, in a 2006 Chevy Monte Carlo that was registered to Adams.  Tingler and Gollahon entered the bank armed with the same firearms they had used in the previous robbery and again wore masks and gloves to conceal their identities.  The robbers pointed their firearms at the tellers and demanded money.  After the tellers handed over cash from the till, the robbers demanded more cash.  The tellers provided the robbers with cash from the bank’s vault and included a GPS tracker, which was activated.  The robbers fled the bank and got into Adams’ car and Adams drove them away from the bank. 

Baltimore Police Department (BPD) units responding to the robbery were provided with the GPS tracking information and located the vehicle with Adams and his co-defendants inside.  All three were arrested.  At the time of their arrests, Gollahon had the gun used in the robbery on his person.  A subsequent search of the vehicle recovered the second firearm used by Tingler in both robberies, and a blue backpack containing the cash stolen during the robbery and the GPS tracking device.  Later that day, a search was executed at Adams’ residence which recovered clothing and a leather duffel bag used during the first robbery.

Adams’ co-defendants, Richard Tingler, age 56, and David Gollahon, age 59, both of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty to the federal charges of armed bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.  If the court accepts their guilty pleas, Gollahon is expected to be sentenced to between 12 and 15 years in federal prison and Tingler is expected to be sentenced to up to 18 years in federal prison.  Judge Chasanow has scheduled Gollahon’s sentencing for December 10, 2020, and set Tingler’s sentencing for January 19, 2021 at 9:30 a.m.  All three defendants remain detained.

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.  Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul A. Riley and Daniel A. Loveland, Jr., who are prosecuting the case.