Press Release
☷Philadelphia Father Sentenced to 13 Years for Attempted Armed Bank Robbery in Which His Sons Were Charged as Accomplices
Federal Bureau of Investigation ( By Press Release office)
May 04,2022
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Philadelphia Father Sentenced to 13 Years for Attempted Armed Bank Robbery In Which His Sons Were Charged as Accomplices PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Ronald DeWitt Vines , 50 , of Philadelphia , PA , was sentenced to 13 years in prison and five years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Paul S . Diamond for an armed robbery he and his accomplices , who were two of his sons , attempted to carry out in Bucks County in late 2017 . In August 2021 , the defendant pleaded guilty to charges of attempted armed bank robbery , and using , carrying , and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence , in connection with his attempt to commit the armed robbery of the PNC Bank branch on Buck Road in Holland , PA , in November 2017 . To execute the robbery , Vines’ son , Elijah Vines ( who was previously sentenced to five years and one month in prison ) , placed a handgun against the side of a bank employee’s head , forcing her to open the bank door as she arrived for work that morning . A second bank employee screamed when she realized the bank was being robbed . Vines and his accomplices , sons Elijah and Solomon Vines , quickly fled the bank in a getaway vehicle before being stopped by Northampton Township Police Officers responding to a 911 call . A search by officers of the getaway vehicle uncovered one loaded semi - automatic handgun , one loaded rifle , and two body armor vests . “This defendant terrified and threatened the lives of bank employees who were just attempting to do their jobs , and he convinced his sons – young men with their whole lives ahead of them – to help him pull it off , ” said U . S . Attorney Williams . “The simple fact is that this family is a danger to the community . This case demonstrates why our All Hands On Deck initiative is so important: we are investigating and prosecuting the most violent criminals to get them off the streets and behind bars . ”“Imagine the terror of that bank employee when the gun was put to her head , ” said Jacqueline Maguire , Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division . “Make no mistake , this was a violent crime , and the fact that Vines and his sons fled empty - handed doesn’t lessen the severity of their actions one bit . Fortunately , local police officers quickly saw and stopped the family’s getaway car before they could try again somewhere else . The FBI is gratified Vines is finally being held accountable for this shameful scheme in which he involved his own children . ”The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation , the Bureau of Alcohol , Tobacco , Firearms and Explosives , and the Northampton Township Police Department , and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney José R . Arteaga .
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