Vermont Man Gets 15 Years for 8 Armed Robberies

Matthew T. Martin, 32, of Weathersfield, Vermont, was sentenced today to fifteen years in federal prison for a string of eight violent and meticulously planned robberies that terrorized small-town banks, gas stations, and a pharmacy across Vermont and New Hampshire. U.S. District Court Judge J. Gavin Murtha handed down the stiff sentence in Brattleboro, calling it exceptional in length but justified given the escalating brazenness and psychological cruelty of Martin’s crimes. The sentence includes five years of supervised release and $25,514 in restitution.

Martin pleaded guilty to a Superseding Information consolidating all eight robberies into a single federal case. On each count, he received a concurrent 180-month prison term. The spree began January 28, 2015, with the robbery of the Windsor County South Credit Union in Springfield, Vermont, where Martin, without displaying a weapon, told the teller he was armed and stole $2,596. Just ten days later, on February 7, he pointed an actual firearm at a clerk during a $200 heist at a Shell gas station in Ludlow, Vermont.

His criminal pattern intensified. On February 17, Martin robbed the Citizens Bank in Springfield, again claiming to have a gun—this time wearing a fake beard to conceal his identity—and made off with $5,744. Months later, on November 11, he struck the Greater Falls Pharmacy in Bellows Falls, demanding Oxycodone and OxyContin while threatening staff with a concealed firearm. The robbery spree then crossed state lines, landing in New Hampshire with precision and menace.

On December 1, 2015, Martin displayed a BB gun indistinguishable from a real firearm during a robbery of the Mascoma Savings Bank in Charlestown, NH, stealing $4,700 and pointing the weapon twice at the teller. Three days later, he hit the TD Bank North in Loudon, NH, brandishing the same type of BB gun and escaping with $3,200. The psychological terror peaked on December 14, when Martin stormed the People’s United Bank in Brattleboro dressed as a woman, flashed a BB gun, and brandished a crude clay device wired to a cell phone, claiming it was a bomb. He stole $3,791.

One week later, on December 21, Martin returned to Ludlow and robbed the Heritage Family Credit Union, this time pointing his BB gun at two tellers and a customer. He walked away with $4,633. The image of a desperate man escalating into a calculated predator culminated in his surrender at the end of December 2015, after the U.S. Marshals Service named him a “Fugitive of the Week,” triggering a regional manhunt.

The investigation was a joint effort by the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, Vermont and New Hampshire State Police, and local departments in Brattleboro, Springfield, Ludlow, and Bellows Falls. U.S. Attorney Eric Miller praised the collaboration, stating that Martin’s ability to strike across jurisdictions made the multi-agency response critical. The sentence sends a stark message: a crime spree fueled by deception, fear, and imitation weapons will be met with the full weight of federal justice.

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