2 Men Sentenced In Attempted Bank Robberies

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Two men were sentenced Thursday to three and a half years in prison for conspiracy to rob banks in D.C. and Maryland, according to the U.S. Justice Department. John Lionell, 26, of Washington, D.C., and Steve Smith, 23, of Hyattsville, Md., were found guilty in November 2017.

A jury found the two guilty of conspiracy to commit bank robbery. On Jan. 26, 2016, they entered a BB&T Bank on 14th Street NW in D.C., according to the Justice Department. They inquired about opening accounts, subsequently demanding money from a teller by handing over a note. They told the teller not to press the silent alarm.

The teller did not give them any money. Lionell told Smith "Hurry up, let's go! Let's go!" the Justice Department said, before the duo left the bank and got on the Metrorail to Silver Spring.

They then went to a Capital One Bank on Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring, displaying a demand note and ordering the teller to put their hands up. Again, they left without money, according to the Justice Department.

The FBI was able to pull fingerprints from brochures that the duo held, and got witnesses to identify them using surveillance footage.

The Justice Department press release didn't specify how the two were apprehended by authorities, but thanked all of the law enforcement agencies involved in the investigation.

Article image via Shutterstock