CALHOUN COUNTY BANK ROBBER PLEADS GUILTY

BIRMINGHAM, AL - TYRONE LEON PORTER, 28, of Jacksonville, Alabama, plead guilty today in U.S. District Court to the October 24, 2006, robbery of the Wachovia Bank in Jacksonville.

"This bank robbery maybe the largest bank robbery in the history of the Northern District of Alabama," stated U.S. Attorney Alice H. Martin. "Almost all of the money was recovered, but we continue to look for the second man involved in the robbery."

A jury trial was underway when PORTER decided to plead guilty to a three-count indictment filed in December 2006. Count One charges PORTER with bank robbery. Count two charges PORTER with using a firearm during the bank robbery, and Count Three charges PORTER with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.

Evidence at the plea hearing revealed that PORTER and another unknown man entered the Wachovia Bank on South Pelham Road in Jacksonville about 9:20 a.m. on October 24, 2006. Both men were armed with handguns. They stole $287,333 and fled in a stolen car. PORTER was arrested later that day, and $276,727 was recovered in the car along with guns used during the robbery.

A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for June 14, 2007.

The maximum sentence for armed bank robbery is 25 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. The minimum mandatory sentence for brandishing a firearm during a bank robbery is 7 years in prison consecutive to any other sentence. The maximum sentence for a felon in possession of a firearm is 15 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

"I appreciate the efforts of our local, state and federal partners in the swift apprehension of Mr. Porter," states Carmen S. Adams, Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge, Birmingham Field Division. "Anyone with information regarding the second person involved in this bank robbery is urged to contact the FBI at 205-326-6166."

Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation along with Special Agents from Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated this case with the assistance of the Jacksonville Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Michael W. Whisonant is prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States Government.