Dorchester Man Charged with Robbery of Local Bank

BOSTON – A Dorchester man has been arrested and charged in connection with the robbery of a local bank. The defendant has a prior federal conviction for bank robbery and state convictions for armed and unarmed robberies.

Joseph Wilcox, 58, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 23, 2025 on one count of bank robbery in relation to the robbery of Santander Bank in East Boston. Wilcox was initially arrested on a criminal complaint on Oct. 1, 2025. He remains detained in federal custody.

According to the charging documents, at approximately 11:40 a.m. on Sept. 6, 2025, a male, allegedly later identified as Wilcox, approached the bank teller, showed a note stating “give me all 20’s and stated “don’t **** with me.” It is alleged that after the teller stated that he did not have many $20 bills, the suspect told the teller to take the money out of the box and give it to him. The teller ultimately gave Wilcox cash totaling $4,150.

A subsequent investigation allegedly identified Wilcox depositing nine $100 bills into his own Santander account at another branch, with his face visible on surveillance. A query of Wilcox through the Registry of Motor Vehicles (“RMV”) revealed a photograph of an individual that resembled the suspect caught on surveillance and matched the description of the suspect provided by the victim teller.

According to court records, Wilcox has a prior federal conviction from 2015 for three counts of bank robbery; a 2010 state conviction for unarmed robbery; and 2004 state conviction for armed robbery.

The charge of bank robbery provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three 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. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra W. Amrhein of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.