Bank robber sentenced to 115 years

Convicted bank robber Kevin Taylor of West Philadelphia must have been plotting and scheming the whole time he was in prison on consecutive federal and state sentences for drug trafficking.

As soon as he got out of jail - still under supervised release by the feds - Taylor, 44, of Pennington Road near Brookhaven Street, and two pals started holding up banks at gunpoint.

The three were convicted of holding up nine banks, including eight in New Jersey and one in York, Pa., and taking nearly $122,000, during a nine-month period from 2005 to2006.

Yesterday, U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler in Camden gave the Philadelphia man some time in jail to think: 115 years - a virtual life sentence.

And should he ever get out, Taylor must undergo three years' supervised release.

After a three-week trial ended in a hung jury in February, a second trial, lasting four weeks, began a week later. Warned of a potential 115-year sentence, Taylor was offered a plea and turned it down.

On March 19, Taylor and the group's ringleader, Steven Gantt, 40, of Camden, were convicted of conspiracy to commit bank robbery and of brandishing a firearm in a crime of violence.

Gantt had just been released from prison after serving a 96-month sentence for robbing 14 banks. He's scheduled to be sentenced on June 25.

A third bank robber, Walter Johnson, 33, of Camden, cooperated, testifying against Gantt and Taylor, and received a nine-year sentence.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Carle said that more than 25 victims testified about the nine robberies. "There were so many victims," she added. "There must have been at least 90 in all."

One teller, who was four months pregnant, had a "gun stuck in her face. And on the way back over the counter, [Taylor] kicked her in the stomach," said Carle, who prosecuted the case with James P. Lynch.

"One or two months later, [the teller] had a ripped placenta," she added. Her twins were born prematurely; one died 12 days later. The teller couldn't return to work and was in therapy for 1 1/2 years for post-traumatic stress syndrome.

During the bank robbery, the gunmen ordered everyone to get on the floor. But a woman, who had a knee replacement, "was thrown to the floor because she didn't move fast enough," said Carle.

The trio was arrested after an eight-month FBI investigation, which included law enforcement officers from nine local jurisdictions.

The three began their bank-robbing spree on Dec. 2, 2005, hitting eight Commerce Banks and one PNC branch, before it ended on Aug. 1, 2006. Their hauls varied from $2,226 to $34,000. *