CHICAGO (AP) – A federal judge has handed a 38-year-old man a 19-year prison sentence for two bank robberies in southern Illinois.
Prosecutors say Marcus J. Thornton, of Edwardsville, entered a bank in Lebanon on Oct. 13, 2016, demanded money and made off with more than $13,000. They say he wielded a semi-automatic handgun in a Feb. 9, 2017, bank robbery in O’Fallon, fleeing with around $10,000. Both communities are just east of St. Louis.
A press released from the FBI on Monday says Thornton pleaded guilty earlier this year to charges of bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. A U.S. district judge imposed the sentence on Friday.
After his release from prison, Thornton also faces a five-year term of supervised release.