Teen bank bandit sentenced to 28 months
Group of youths were arrested after a daring daylight robbery at bank in downtown St. Catharines
The oldest member of a group of teenagers arrested in January following a dramatic bank heist in St. Catharines has been sentenced to 28 months in jail.
Based on the amount of time Roel Lloyd, 18, has spent in pretrial custody — the equivalent of 13 months — he must now serve an additional 15 months behind bars.
“It will suffice to say that the courts treat bank robberies as serious matters that require lengthy sentences so as to deter others from committing the crime,” Judge Joseph De Filippis said Friday in an Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines.
The Mississauga teenager, who pleaded guilty to several charges including robbery and use of an imitation firearm, is the oldest member of a group of
youths arrested following a daring daylight robbery.
On Jan. 31, shortly before 5 p.m., Lloyd and two accomplices entered the Bank of Montreal in downtown St. Catharines.
The bank was crowded with staff and customers.
The defendant, armed with what was later determined to be a replica handgun, pushed one customer and ordered everyone to “get down.”
“This, of course, was not known to the many people in the bank,” the judge said of the weapon. “To them it was real, and potentially lethal. This has had a great impact on the victims.”
Two people who were in the bank at the time of the robbery provided the court with victim impact statements.
One person said she has recurring nightmares of the defendant yelling and waving a gun and is now fearful around strangers.
A male customer who suffers from heart disease had a defibrillator implanted in his chest several months before the robbery.
He noted the device “could have been triggered, also causing a different outcome.”
A police officer driving near the bank at the time was flagged down by a citizen and observed the three robbers flee the bank and get into a waiting car. The vehicle sped off, followed by the cruiser.
Police later abandoned the pursuit due to public safety concerns. A short time later, the car was spotted near Niagara Region headquarters in Thorold.
“It is only by chance that the dangerous manner in which the stolen car was driven did not create more victims,” the judge said.
When the car blew a tire near St. David’s Road and Highway 406, the four occupants fled the vehicle and ran to the parking lot of the Region building.
A police officer was able to grab Lloyd and place him in handcuffs.
As the officer was dealing with the defendant, however, another teen jumped into the cruiser and drove off.
The officer attempted to stop the cruiser, and momentarily left Lloyd unattended in the parking lot.
The defendant attempted to run away, but was tackled by a Brock University student who was walking in the area.
An investigation subsequently linked the same suspects to a robbery attempt at a Scotiabank on Geneva Street in St. Catharines the day before.
The Lloyd, who had no previous criminal record, said he is “truly sorry” for the harm he has caused to others.
He said his time in jail has been a difficult as he could not receive visits from family for four months due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Upon his release from custody, he plans to finish high school and get a job and become a productive member of society.
“I am aware that a man facing ajail sentence may say things to a judge that are not true,” De Filippis said. “I have, on occasion, witnessed this. However, I listened and watched carefully as this young man spoke and I am confident his remorse is genuine.”
Three youths, two 17 year olds and a 15-year-old, were also arrested in connection with the robbery.
The teens, who cannot be identified, under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, are still awaiting trial.