Serial Bank Robber Sentenced To 235 Months Of Imprisonment

SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that William Fischer, age 46, of Dunmore, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on September 21, 2018, by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion to 235 months’ imprisonment for robbing 14 banks and brandishing firearms during the course of those robberies.

According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, Fischer robbed 14 banks located throughout northeastern Pennsylvania between December 1, 2015 and September 13, 2017.  Fischer was apprehended shortly after the September 13, 2017 robbery by the Pennsylvania State Police.  For 12 of the offenses, Fischer robbed the banks while armed with a firearm.  He also was convicted of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.  Fischer wore a ballistic vest during the robberies and was arrested with a loaded assault rifle and a loaded handgun.  Fischer’s crime spree netted $203,779.30; law enforcement recovered $16,769.00 of the stolen funds.

In addition to the sentence of imprisonment, Judge Mannion ordered that Fischer pay $187,010.30 to the victims of his crimes.  The United States forfeited $29,697.75 of Fischer’s assets, 24 firearms, ammunition, a suppressor, and other firearms components.

The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police, and by numerous local law enforcement authorities throughout northeastern Pennsylvania.  Assistant United States Attorney Phillip J. Caraballo prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. 

# # #