Saturday, May 06, 2000
Robbery case sent to federal court
Prison time may double
By Janice Morse
The Cincinnati Enquirer
UNION TOWNSHIP — Two bank robbery suspects are facing federal charges — and if convicted, they could face more than double the prison time carried under state charges.
The charges were changed from state to federal after local and federal authorities agreed that the case would be more appropriate for federal court than state court, said Robert A. Behlen Jr. of the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Phillip Vinson, 18, and Tiffany Billingsley, 21, appeared Friday in federal court in Cincinnati for a detention hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Jack Sherman Jr. ordered them to be held in jail while they await their trial. A preliminary hearing is Wednesday.
The suspects were arrested April 28, shortly after the robbery of the First National Bank of Southwestern Ohio on Princeton-Glendale Road. A bystander followed the getaway vehicle and supplied its license plate number to police, a federal court affidavit says.
That number was regis tered to a Mansfield address, but further computer checks led authorities to the 3500 block of Lakewood Court in Fairfield Township, where the suspects were arrested.
The affidavit says both suspects confessed to their involvement in the robbery.
As originally charged under state law, they could have faced up to eight years in prison if convicted.
But under federal law, each could face a 20-year sentence, said Tim Shaw, special agent at the FBI's Dayton office.
Mr. Shaw said officials consider many factors, including whether a gun was involved, when deciding whether to prosecute bank robbery suspects federally. Police reports indicate that handguns were displayed during last week's Union Township robbery, but no one was hurt.
Authorities are more ag gressively prosecuting bank robbers in the 12-county area handled by the Dayton FBI office — which includes Butler, Warren and Clinton counties, Mr. Shaw said.
A rash of bank heists has been recorded in the area, with 44 reported so far this year — ahead of the pace in 1999, when 77 bank robberies were recorded.
Staff writer Steve Kemme contributed to this story.
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