OAKLAND - Gary Casdell Fite, II, was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for armed bank robbery and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced.
In pleading guilty, Fite admitted to robbing the Mechanics Bank on Pinole Valley Boulevard in Pinole, Calif., on March 1, 2013, with the help of a getaway driver and a lookout. Fite admitted that he was the gunman in the armed robbery. According to the plea agreement, Fite entered the bank, brandished his loaded firearm, and ordered everyone to get down on the ground. Fite then jumped over the teller counter and demanded money from two victim tellers. While demanding money, Fite pointed his loaded gun at the head of one of the victim tellers. Fite stole $3,292 from the bank.
Fite, 23, of Oakland, was indicted by a federal Grand Jury on March 28, 2013, and is currently in federal custody. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton. In addition to his prison term, Fite was also sentenced to a 5-year period of supervised release.
Co-defendant and getaway driver Regina Dean, 37, of Antioch, was sentenced on Aug. 21, 2013, to 5 years in prison. The alleged lookout, Kevin Tyrone Buford, 27, of Vallejo, was indicted on Aug. 30, 2013, and his next court appearance is scheduled before Judge Hamilton on Sept. 18, 2013, at 1:30 p.m.
Brian C. Lewis is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance Legal Assistant Janice Pagsanjan. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
