A Boyertown man previously charged with robbing two banks in Uwchlan and Lower Merion faces new charges for four additional robberies he alleged committed.
Marcus Akiem Ricketts, 36, was indicted Friday with armed bank robbery and using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for the four robberies in Pottstown, Devon, Emmaus and Exton.
According to a press release from U.S. Attorney Zane David Memeger, Ricketts allegedly robbed the Sovereign Bank, formerly located at 258 E. High St. in Pottstown, on June 8, 2010; a Citizens Bank branch at 209 Lancaster Ave. in Devon on Jan. 24, 2012; the First Niagara Bank at 502 State Ave. in Emmaus on April 12, 2012; and an M&T Bank formerly located at 760 N. Pottstown Pike in Exton on July 2, 2012.
Ricketts was indicted by U.S. District Court in February of this year for the robbery of the M&T Bank. He allegedly stole $27,906 in that crime.
In August 2012, he was charged by Lower Merion Police with the Aug. 9, 2011, robbery of the Wells Fargo bank in the 400 block of Lancaster Avenue.
If convicted of all charges, Ricketts faces a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment, with a mandatory minimum term of 82 years, five years of supervised release, a $2 million fine, and an $800 special assessment.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Chester County Sheriff’s Department, the Chester County Detectives, and the police departments for Easttown Township, Emmaus, Lower Merion, Pottstown, Uwchlan, Shillington Township, Warminster, and West Whiteland. In addition, the District Attorney’s offices for the counties of Berks, Bucks, Chester, Lehigh, and Montgomery were also involved in the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffery W. Whitt will prosecute.
