New Haven Man Charged in $18,739 Gunpoint Bank Heists

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – A New Haven man is facing federal charges for allegedly robbing two banks in December 2019 and January 2020, discharging a firearm during one of the robberies, and stealing a total of $18,739.

MARQUE GREENE-PENDERGRASS, 31, of New Haven, was indicted on four counts stemming from the armed robberies of a TD Bank in Woodbridge and a Citizens Bank in East Haven. The indictment alleges that on December 27, 2019, Greene brandished a revolver and robbed the TD Bank at 128 Amity Road, stealing $7,139.

On January 7, 2020, Greene brandished a revolver and robbed the Citizens Bank at 430 Foxon Boulevard in East Haven, stealing $11,600. During the second robbery, Greene discharged the firearm, putting the lives of bank employees and customers at risk.

The indictment charges Greene with two counts of bank robbery with a dangerous weapon, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years on each count. He is also charged with one count of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, an offense that carries a mandatory consecutive term of imprisonment of at least seven years, and one count of discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, an offense that carries a mandatory consecutive term of imprisonment of at least 10 years.

Greene is currently incarcerated serving an unrelated state sentence. U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt, and charges are only allegations until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force with the assistance of the Woodbridge and East Haven Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program dedicated to reducing gun violence and making our neighborhoods safer.