The U.S. Attorney's Office sends word that a man named Ennis Harris Jackson will be going to federal prison for more than 17 years for his role in holding up a Loomis armored truck in May 2010 outside a Mesquite Bank of America branch. Jackson was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Barbara Lynn following his guilty plea in June. Among the nine men involved in the robbery, all Dallas residents in their mid- to late 20s, Jackson's sentence was by far the longest.
Prosecutors say the $421,000 stick-em-up was not Jackson's idea; rather it began with 22-year-old Fred Taylor, sentenced to 96 months in prison on top of another three-year sentence stemming from a separate federal offense. Feds say a Bank of America employee tipped off Taylor, letting him know when the Loomis truck would be pulling into the Town East Boulevard branch -- and how much it would be driving away with. And so, say the feds:
On the day of the robbery, the defendants met at a McDonalds to finalize the details of the robbery. Five different vehicles were used to transport the defendants to the bank. Surveillance was set up at several points to ensure there were no police in the area. When the Loomis truck arrived, the guard entered the bank and left with $421,000. Two defendants jumped out of a car, approached the guard, pointed a gun at his head, and took the money he was carrying. A co-defendant/ accomplice arrived and two of the robbers left with him.
Several of the robbers left the scene and later met to divide the money. Two were caught at the scene. Many of the defendants were quickly apprehended. However, months later DNA results led to three additional arrests: Christopher Peterson, Frederick Peterson and Ennis Jackson, who initially fled. The day after the bank robbery they purchased three luxury vehicles and jewelry. One vehicle was a 7 series BMW, with $20,000 in custom upgrades, including alligator embroidered stitching throughout the car.
