Bank robber wore no disguise, paid hotel with dye-soaked cash

Andre Stephon Edwards, 40, of 96 Grandview Ave., Hamden, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in connection with 3 bank robberies. Andre Stephon Edwards, 40, of 96 Grandview Ave., Hamden, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in connection with 3 bank robberies. Photo: Contributed / Photo: Contributed / Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Bank robber wore no disguise, paid hotel with dye-soaked cash 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

NEW HAVEN — A Hamden man who made no effort to disguise himself while robbing three New Haven banks and escaping in taxi cabs was sentenced Thursday to serve 10 years in prison.

“You were not very clever,” Superior Court Judge Patrick J. Clifford told Andre Edwards, 41, of Grandview Avenue during the sentencing hearing. “You wore no mask and did nothing to hide your identity. You were all over the surveillance tapes.”

Clifford also noted that when Edwards checked into a West Haven motel, “you paid for it with money that had red dye all over it” as part of the banks’ tracking systems.

New Haven Public Defender Beth A. Merkin told Clifford that Edwards has had a substance abuse problem. She noted Edwards confessed to the crimes and did not use a weapon during any of the robberies.

Clifford read aloud the notes Edwards handed to the tellers: “Give me all your money,” “Give me the money or I will hurt you” and “This is a robbery. If you move, I will hurt you.”

Assistant State’s Attorney Reed Durham reported the recurring traumatic effects felt by one of the tellers: “Each customer who hands her something now makes her nervous.”

None of the tellers came to the sentencing hearing.

The first robbery came just before 9 a.m. on Nov. 6, 2017, when Edwards walked into the Key Bank at 195 Church St. and handed the note to a teller. Police said he fled in a taxi shortly before officers arrived.

Five days later, just before noon, Edwards entered the Webster Bank branch at 894 Whalley Ave. and waited in line before demanding cash from a teller. In that incident, a dye pack in the bag of money exploded as he headed for a waiting taxi. He fled on foot.

The third robbery occurred two days after the second one when Edwards walked into the Key Bank at 201 Grand Ave. shortly after 9 a.m. After he demanded and received cash, a dye pack exploded outside the bank as Edwards headed toward a waiting taxi.

Police said the third cabbie remembered Edwards’ destination: the Econo Lodge in West Haven. This helped police in West Haven and New Haven work together to locate and arrest him.

Edwards had been held in lieu of $999,000 bail since his arrest on Nov. 14, 2017, one day after the third robbery. He came to the sentencing hearing dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit. He said nothing on his behalf when Clifford gave him that opportunity.

Edwards pleaded guilty in October to three counts of second-degree robbery. The plea agreement called for him to serve a total of 10 years in prison, followed by six years of special parole.

Durham said the banks sustained total losses of $8,028 and they want restitution. But Clifford recommended those payments by Edwards “based on his ability to pay.” Clifford noted: “I don’t think it’s likely he’ll be able to pay it. Maybe he’ll win the lottery or something.”

Clifford told Edwards, “You’re 41. You would expect to be aging out of this.”

Clifford said a key reason for the 10-year sentence was Edwards’ extensive criminal record. It stretches back to 1995 for a conviction on burglaries. Later came convictions for third-degree robbery (one year in prison), larceny (one year in prison) and misconduct with a motor vehicle (five years in prison).

Then in 2006 Edwards received a 10-year sentence, Clifford noted, “for four similar robberies” to the 2017 crimes. “You were out just four months on probation when this (the three bank robberies) happened.”

Clifford said Edwards had written him letters asking for less prison time than 10 years. “But this is a reasonable disposition,” Clifford told Edwards.

In addition to the restitution recommendation, Clifford recommended these conditions of the special parole: Edwards cannot go back to those three banks and he should seek substance abuse counseling and treatment.

randall.beach@hearstmediact.com