⏱ 2 min read
Melvin Wiltshire, a 58-year-old from Mount Ida, Arkansas, walked into the Strong, Arkansas Simmons Bank on April 2, 2024, wearing a camouflage face mask and a hooded gray sweatshirt. He pointed a black revolver at three bank employees and demanded they fill a green and black backpack with cash. The employees complied, handing over $23,850, mostly in $50 and $100 bills. Wiltshire then ordered them to get down on the floor and stay there for two minutes before fleeing the scene on foot.
State and federal investigators quickly got to work, reviewing footage from a nearby doorbell camera that showed a distinctive gray Ford pickup driving away from the area. Later that evening, a Union County Deputy Sheriff spotted the pickup in Strong and approached the driver, who was identified as Wiltshire. He was detained and eventually arrested on suspicion of the robbery.
Following Wiltshire’s arrest, investigators found two bags abandoned in the wooded area behind the bank. One of the bags, a green and black backpack, contained a camouflage mask and $21,250 in cash. The other bag held clothing matching what Wiltshire had worn during the robbery.
On June 29, 2026, Wiltshire was sentenced to 114 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for his role in the armed bank robbery. The sentence was handed down by Judge Susan O. Hickey in the United States District Court at El Dorado.
📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Violent Crime
- Defendant: Arkansas
- Location: AR
- Source: DOJ Press Release
