STAFF REPORTS
ROCHESTER — U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Joseph W. Peeples, III was found guilty after a jury trial of robbing the Chase Bank located at 1 South Clinton Avenue, Rochester, NY of $109,000. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melissa M. Marangola and Katelyn Hartford, who handled the case, stated that on January 5, 2017, the defendant robbed the Chase Bank. Peeples was tracked by law enforcement to Binghamton, New York where he was arrested approximately 13 hours later. He left approximately $43,000 in a bathroom at the Trailways Bus Station and $10,000 in a taxi cab. Upon his arrest, law enforcement officers searched his hotel room and found $52,000. Peeples had just been released from federal prison for an unrelated bank robbery 6 days earlier. During the trial, Peeples acted as his own attorney. A jury deliberated for under one hour and returned a verdict on Friday, March 30, 2018.
The conviction is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin P. Lyons, and the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Police Chief Michael Ciminelli.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 27, 2018 at 10:00 am before Chief Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr.
