Demetrius Worley, Bank Robbery, Indiana 2013

A 24-year-old Indianapolis man has been sentenced to 10 years and 6 months in prison for his role in an armed robbery of the State Bank of Lizton branch in Plainfield.

Demetrius Worley, 24, of Indianapolis, was sentenced on June 10, 2013 by U.S. District Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson.

Worley pleaded guilty to charges related to the armed robbery, which occurred on May 10, 2013.

According to court documents, Worley and co-defendant William McKnight entered the bank branch in Plainfield, and an alert was issued that an armed robbery might be in progress.

Worley and McKnight were observed leaving the bank and reentering a vehicle, and a pursuit of that vehicle began. The vehicle was next observed pulled over on the side of the road, and McKnight exited the vehicle before it sped away. McKnight was armed and refused to comply with orders to disarm. He was shot by law enforcement and is now deceased.

A pursuit of the vehicle continued, and after a traffic stop, a third individual was brought into custody. That defendant, Lori A. Armstrong, age 44, of Indianapolis, is currently awaiting trial. Defendant Worley, who had exited the vehicle earlier, was later brought into custody after being located in a nearby residential neighborhood. A search of the vehicle revealed clothing consistent with what the robbers were observed wearing, and a search of a nearby neighborhood resulted in the location of a purple bag containing approximately $6,900, consistent with the amount of loss suffered by the State Bank of Lizton.

At the time of the robbery, Worley was on parole relating to a conviction for bank robbery. Reviews of prison visitation records show that Worley visited McKnight while McKnight was incarcerated. This prosecution comes as part of the U.S. Attorney’s Violent Crime Initiative, and is the result of a collaborative investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, Plainfield Police Department, and Hendricks County law enforcement partners.

Related Federal Cases