Abel Lopez, Bank Robbery, New Mexico 2016

An Albuquerque man, Abel Lopez, has pleaded guilty to federal bank robbery charges in New Mexico. Lopez, 31, admitted to his role in a string of bank robberies across the city.

According to court documents, Lopez, along with co-defendants William Colbert, 38, and Joleen Sedillo, 42, robbed multiple Bank of the West branches in June and July 2016. On July 14, 2016, Lopez entered a Bank of the West branch to check for security before communicating with his co-defendants to proceed with the heist.

Lopez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank robbery and aiding and abetting an attempted bank robbery. Under the terms of his plea agreement, he will be sentenced to 27 to 33 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

Colbert, who pleaded guilty on April 5, 2017, will be sentenced to 41 to 51 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release. Sedillo, who pleaded guilty on March 28, 2017, will also be sentenced to 27 to 33 months in prison followed by a term of supervised release.

The case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Murphy is prosecuting the case.

Abel Lopez’s guilty plea marks the latest development in the high-profile case. The pleas of Lopez, Colbert, and Sedillo bring an end to the saga of the trio’s brazen bank robberies across Albuquerque.

As the sentencing process unfolds, the community will be left to wonder how such a brazen scheme could unfold in the heart of New Mexico’s largest city.

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