Bank Robber Found Guilty Following Federal Trial

Miami, Florida – A Miami federal jury found David Franklin Lee, 60, of Miami, guilty of attempted bank robbery, following a three-day trial, before U.S. District Judge Marcia G. Cooke.

According to the evidence admitted at trial, on November 17, 2020, Lee entered a Bank of America branch, located on Washington Avenue in Miami Beach.  Lee passed a handwritten note to the bank teller, demanding all the money in the bank.  Upon receiving the note, the teller activated the bank’s silent alarm and retreated to a back room.  Police arrived on the scene and arrested Lee.

U.S. District Judge Marcia G. Cooke will sentence Lee on May 4, at 10:00 a.m., in Miami.  Lee faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office; and Richard Clements, Chief, Miami Beach Police Department, made the announcement.

FBI Miami and the Miami Beach Police Department investigated this case.  AUSA Stacey Bergstrom prosecuted it.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 21-cr-20034.

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