Update: Ferrone was sentenced on November 17, 2020.
A man who robbed three banks wearing a disguise including a high-quality latex mask has pleaded guilty to three counts of bank robbery, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York.
Nicholas R. Ferrone, 29, of Utica, NY, robbed three banks in Western New York between August and December 2019. He is scheduled to be sentenced on September 29, 2020.
The 2019 bank robberies
Ferrone wore a high-quality latex mask which covered his entire head during each robbery.
On August 20, 2019, Ferrone robbed a Bank of America in Depew, NY. He entered the bank wearing a yellow fedora hat, a black long-sleeve shirt, black pants, white Puma sneakers, and black-framed glasses. Ferrone passed a note to the teller and told her, “I want it all. I mean it.” The teller gave him $1,920 with a hidden GPS tracker. Ferrone left the bank parking lot in a Ford F-150 pickup truck with no front plate.
On October 31, 2019, Ferrone robbed a Chase Bank in Gates, NY. He entered the bank wearing a yellow hat, dark earmuffs, a blue blazer over a maroon shirt, dark pants and shoes, dark gloves, and carrying an umbrella. Ferrone passed a note to the teller which read “I have a gun. Give all money” and told her “All of it. All of it.” The teller gave him $6,540.
On December 17, 2019, Ferrone robbed an M&T Bank in Penfield, NY. He entered the bank wearing a black hat with earflaps, a tan jacket, gray sweatpants, and dark gloves. Ferrone passed a note to the teller which read “I have fully loaded handgun. All large notes” in all capital letters. The teller gave him $467. Ferrone left the note behind.
The traffic stop
On January 13, 2020, Ferrone was pulled over by a New York State Trooper for not having license plates displayed. He was driving a black 2011 Ford F-150 pickup truck. Ferrone told the trooper that he had Suboxone (a medication used to treat opioid addiction) and Adderall in the vehicle. The trooper found Oxycontin and Morphine pills (opioids) and observed masks and a BB gun. Ferrone was arrested and his vehicle was towed.
When police searched the vehicle the next day, they found four high-quality latex masks, two handwritten demand notes, and clothes that he wore during the robberies.
“I HAVE GUN ALL LARGE BILLS”
Handwritten note found in Ferrone’s pickup truck during a traffic stop
Police also found a stolen license plate that was recorded going through a toll booth at the Utica exit on the New York State Thruway the day after the M&T Bank robbery.
The 2013 bank robberies
Ferrone robbed eight banks in Central New York and Western Massachusetts between January and March 2013.
He committed the first robbery alone, and the rest with an accomplice, Zachariah Edwards. Ferrone or Edwards threatened the tellers that they were armed during most of the robberies. They used Ferrone’s mother’s light gray 2004 Cadillac Escalade for six of the robberies.
Ferrone and Edwards were identified after someone called in a tip to the DeWitt Police Department in East Syracuse, NY.
Ferrone’s attorney at the time claimed that the first robbery happened “almost by accident” after Ferrone lost all his money gambling and consumed a large quantity of drugs.
Edwards said that he and Ferrone used alcohol, cocaine, and opiates before each robbery. Edwards also said that they used the proceeds from the robberies to buy alcohol and drugs and gamble at the Turning Stone Casino.
In May 2013, Ferrone pleaded guilty to eight counts of bank robbery. He was sentenced to 3 years in prison, 3 years of supervised release, and restitution of $24,800. Ferrone’s term of supervised release expired in October 2018.
Edwards also pleaded guilty and received the same sentence.