VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WVEC) — A Virginia Beach man was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Tuesday for participating in an armed robbery of a bank in Virginia Beach.
According to court documents, 35-year-old Austin Lee Howard made fans with Marquis Larosa Buckley, 41, to rob a PNC Bank in Virginia Beach. Howard was caught on surveillance video inside the bank the day before the armed robbery to learn about the area.
On October 13, 2017, Buckley, wearing a disguise, entered the bank and showed a gun while demanding money from the tellers. He was also seen dropping a hoax bomb.
Buckley fired his gun in the bank to speed up tellers as they handed over about $8000. One of the tellers secreted an electronic tracking device in the money given to Buckley before he fled the scene and got into the get-a-way vehicle driven by Howard.
Police were able to track the robber's movement with the GPS as they fled the scene. The getaway-vehicle, GPS, pistol and disguise worn by Buckley were tracked down by officials.
Buckley pleaded guilty to his role in the armed robberies on July 3 and is scheduled for sentencing on October 3.
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