ANNISTON BANK ROBBER/ CARJACKER  INDICTED

BIRMINGHAM, AL - GABRIEL DEWAYNE RICE, 20, of Gadsden, Alabama, was charged in a four-count indictment by a federal grand jury for armed bank robbery.  United States Attorney Alice H. Martin and Carmen S. Adams, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation announce the indictment that was filed  today in U.S. District Court in Birmingham. 

The indictment charges RICE with armed bank robbery of a Wachovia Bank in Anniston, using a firearm during the commission of the bank robbery and carjacking, subsequent to the bank robbery.  The indictment also charges RICE with using a firearm during the commission of the carjacking. 

The maximum sentence for the armed bank robbery is 25 years to be followed by a minimum sentence of 5 years for using the firearm.  The maximum sentence for the carjacking is 15 years to be followed by 25 years if Rice is also convicted of using the firearm during the carjacking.  The maximum fine for each of the counts is $250,000.

“Armed bank robbers who then resort to carkjacking in an attempt to escape capture will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” stated U.S. Attorney Alice H. Martin. 

“The coordination of local, state and federal law enforcement is remarkable in investigations such as this,” states Carmen S.  Adams Special Agent in Charge Federal Bureau of Investigation.  “Police officers and federal agents are commended in this case for their diligent efforts.”          

Special Agents of the Gadsden FBI, the Anniston Police Department, the Etowah County Drug Enforcement Unit, the Northeast Alabama Safe Streets Task Force, the Gadsden Police Department, and the Etowah County Sheriff’s Office all contributed to the investigation in this case.   Assistant United States Attorney L. James Weil, Jr. is prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States.

Members of the public are reminded that the indictment contains only charges.  A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.