Omaha’s Richard Allen Shaffer, a man with a criminal history as dark as his latest offense, has once again earned the label of lifer. Shaffer, 54, was sentenced to life imprisonment after being caught in a daring bank heist in Sioux City, Iowa.
This is not Shaffer’s first brush with the law; the defendant, already serving time for six previous bank robbery convictions, now faces a new sentence for his latest exploit. On October 12, 2012, it was revealed that Shaffer had entered a bank in Sioux City and demanded money at gunpoint, escaping with $3,710 before being apprehended.
But the severity of this sentence was not just due to the heist itself. The court took into account Shaffer’s extensive criminal history, including a 1979 conviction for unpremeditated murder in a United States Army General court-martial. This conviction, along with his six bank robbery convictions, triggered the application of the federal three strikes law.
Judge Mark W. Bennett, who presided over the case, determined that Shaffer’s prior offenses qualified as serious violent felonies under the three strikes law, leading to the life sentence. The court also ordered Shaffer to pay $4,710 in restitution to Heritage Bank and imposed a $100 special assessment. His supervised release term extends for five years post-prison.
Shaffer’s criminal history is now marked with his third strike, sealing his fate within the federal prison system where parole is non-existent.
The investigation into Shaffer’s latest crime was a collaborative effort between the Sioux City, Iowa Police Department, The Omaha, Nebraska Police Department, United States Probation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild prosecuted the case, ensuring justice for the victims of this brazen bank robbery.
For more information on this case, visit the court file at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl, where the case file number is 13-4077.
Related Federal Cases
Key Facts
- State: Iowa
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
🔒 Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
Browse More
