Idaho man sentenced to 13 years in federal prison for American Falls bank robbery
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POCATELLO — A man who pleaded guilty to armed robbery in federal court has been ordered to serve a 13-year prison sentence.
Steven James Parker, 50, of west Idaho, entered guilty pleas to felony charges of bank robbery and use of a firearm in the furtherance of a violent crime after reaching a plea agreement, according to court documents obtained by EastIdahoNews.com. In exchange, a felony charge for possession of a firearm by a prohibited person was dismissed.
During a May 7 hearing, Parker was sentenced to sentences of six and seven years in federal prison, respectively, by Senior U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill. The prison sentences will be served consecutively, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Parker pleaded guilty to robbing the Bank of Commerce in American Falls on Sept. 1, 2023, court records show.
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According to the plea agreement, Parker entered the bank on Tyhee Avenue with a Hi-Point .380 handgun. He pointed the gun at a teller and handed the teller a Family Dollar grocery bag, demanding she and another teller fill it with cash.
After the two tellers filled the bag with the cash from their drawers, Parker took the money and fled.
Parker was connected to the crime by eye witnesses and surveillance footage of his truck. When he was located by officers, they found him in possession of a Family Dollar grocery bag containing money banded with a ticket similar to the one used by the American Falls Bank of Commerce.
This if Parker’s fourth conviction for bank robbery — second in federal court to go with two in state court, the release says.
As part of the plea agreement, Parker faced a sentence of as much as life in prison and fines of more than $250,000.
In addition to the 13-year prison sentence, Winmill ordered Parker to pay $11,106 in restitution. Upon release from prison, he will be placed on supervised release for five years.