FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2009 WWW.USDOJ.GOV/USAO/KYW	CONTACT: DAWN MASDEN PHONE: (502) 582-5911 FAX: (502) 582-5097

HOPKINSVILLE MAN SENTENCED FOR TWO ARMED BANK ROBBERIES AND BEING ARMED DURING A CRIME OF VIOLENCE

OWENSBORO, KY - James Edward Lett, Jr., age 25, of Hopkinsville, Kentucky was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment for committing two bank robberies and using a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, Acting U.S. Attorney Candace G. Hill of the Western District of Kentucky announced today. Judge Joseph McKinley, United States District Court, also sentenced Lett to 5 years supervised release following incarceration. There is no parole in the federal judicial system.

Lett had previously pled guilty and admitted that on September 28, 2007, he and co-defendant Tony Lemont Gillis, forcibly stole $1,550 from the First United Bank located at 101 East Main Street in Earlington, Kentucky. Gillis waited outside the bank in a vehicle while Lett entered the bank with a Glock 9 mm handgun to accomplish the robbery.

Lett had also admitted that on December 29, 2007, he, Gillis and Shannon Ray Dycus committed another bank robbery at the US Bank branch located at 15 Chelsa Drive in Madisonville, Kentucky and stole $23,515. Gillis again acted as the get-away driver while Lett and Dycus each entered the bank with weapons. Lett was armed with a Glock 9 mm handgun and Dycus was armed with a Davis Industries .380 handgun. After the robbery, Lett fled from the Kentucky State Police who employed nail strips to disable his vehicle. Lett then continued his flight on foot and fired his weapon in the direction of two pursuing Kentucky State Police troopers.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert B. Bonar in partnership with the Hopkins County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office and the Christian County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Madisonville Police Department, the Hopkins County Sheriff's Department and the Kentucky State Police.