SCRANTON — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Pennsylvania, Middle), published as received.

SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that David Sandy Lee Parks, age 60, of New Haven, Connecticut, pleaded guilty to six bank robberies in Pennsylvania and two other states.     

According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, in July 2015, a grand jury in Scranton returned a two-count Indictment alleging that Parks committed the armed robbery of the Peoples Security Bank, Duryea, on July 3, 2015 and the armed robbery of the Wells Fargo Bank, Plymouth, on July 10, 2015.

A subsequent Criminal Information charged Parks with four additional bank robberies: 

  • the Savings Institute Bank & Trust, Westerly, Rhode Island, on February 20, 2015;
  • the Coastway Community Bank, Warwick, Rhode Island, on June 16, 2015;
  • the Citizen’s Bank, Stonington, Connecticut, on June 24, 2015; and
  • the First Niagara, Upper Macungie Township, PA, on July 17, 2015.

Today, Parks appeared before Senior United States District Court Judge Edwin M. Kosik in Federal Court in Scranton, and pleaded guilty to all six robberies. 

Parks has been in custody since July 17, 2015, the day officers from the Upper Macungie Police Department arrested and charged him with the robbery of the First Niagara Bank which occurred earlier that day. 

The case was jointly investigated by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies: the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Pennsylvania State Police, the Duryea, Plymouth Township,   Upper Macungie, Pittston, Wilkes-Barre, Wilkes-Barre Township, Plains Township, Jenkins Township, West Pittston, Edwardsville, Warwick, Rhode Island, Hanover, Kingston Police Departments, and the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office.  The prosecution was conducted and coordinated by Assistant United States Attorney John Gurganus.

A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. No date has been set for sentencing.

The maximum penalty under federal law for all the charges is 135 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

 

# # #