Chelsea Man Pleads Guilty to Armed Robberies of Three Local Banks

BOSTON – A Chelsea man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to the 2024 armed robberies of banks in Weymouth, Jamaica Plain and Hyde Park. 

Keywan Kelly, 30, pleaded guilty to three counts of armed bank robbery. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for November 12, 2025. In August 2024, Kelly was arrested and charged by criminal complaint and was subsequently indicted in September 2024.

At approximately 11:52 a.m. on July 1, 2024, a male – later identified as Kelly – entered a Bank of America branch in Weymouth wearing gloves and a medical mask. Kelly approached a teller window and pushed a handwritten note towards the teller demanding $20,000 and threatened that he would “kill you all,” while pointing a firearm at the teller. The teller then handed Kelly $15,000, after which Kelly demanded more. The teller gave Kelly another approximately $4,000 to $5,000 before he left the bank. During the robbery, Kelly made verbal threats such as, “Run that s**t before I blow this place up” and “I’ll kill all of you.”
 

Similarly, at approximately 1:41 p.m. on July 16, 2024, a male – later identified as Kelly – entered the Rockland Trust Bank in Jamaica Plain wearing a black balaclava style mask, black clothing and white latex gloves. Kelly approached the teller window and handed the teller a note that read, “I need 20K no DyPacks I have 4 bombs I’ll Kill everyone make quick,” while brandishing a firearm. Kelly fled the bank on foot after receiving approximately $2,480 in cash from the teller.

At approximately 10:09 a.m. on July 26, 2024, a male – later identified as Kelly – entered another Rockland Trust Bank branch in Hyde Park, again wearing a black balaclava style mask and gloves. There, Kelly handed the teller a handwritten note that included words to the effect of, “you’re being robbed give me cash,” before pointing a firearm at the teller. Kelly verbally threatened to “shoot” and demanded $20,000. Upon receiving approximately $3,000 in cash, Kelly took back the demand note and fled the bank.

A subsequent investigation identified Kelly on the Weymouth bank’s video surveillance and identified Kelly’s fingerprints on the vehicle used as a getaway car following the Weymouth robbery. The investigation also revealed connections between Kelly and vehicles that were identified as being in the vicinity of the Jamaica Plain and Hyde Park banks at the time of the robberies. Cell phone location data revealed that Kelly’s cell phone was present in the vicinity of each of the banks near the time of the robberies. 

The charge of armed bank robbery provides for a sentence of up to 25 years in prison, up to five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $ 250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Boston and Weymouth Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Maynard of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.