Two bank robbery suspects sentenced in federal court

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Two of the four suspects in the Oct. 10, 2013, bank robbery in Morley, Missouri, were sentenced in federal court Monday.

Alisha D. Porter of Oran, Missouri, and Candice L. Wright of Chicago were the two women involved in the robbery.

The other two suspects are Joshua L. Thompson of Sikeston, Missouri, and Roger R. Clayton of Davenport, Iowa. Thompson was sentenced in August and Clayton is scheduled for sentencing in February.

A probable-cause affidavit filed in the case states that just before 8 a.m. Oct. 10, 2013, two men forced their way into the bank at 32134 U.S. 61, held a teller at gunpoint and took an undisclosed amount of cash from drawers and vaults.

A witness saw two people run from the direction of the bank and get into a tan sport utility vehicle, the affidavit states.

During the trial Monday, it was established that the car belonged to Porter, and, according to her attorney, Rebecca Reed, driving the vehicle was the only interaction Porter had in the case. She did not participate in planning the robbery, nor did she flee with the other suspects and spend the $140,000 they stole, Reed said.

U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. sentenced Porter to 60 months in prison for conspiracy to commit a bank robbery and bank robbery and said he would have been more inclined to grant the maximum sentence -- up to 97 months -- if Porter had not cooperated so completely.

"This was still a violent armed robbery," Limbaugh said. "And yes, you cooperated, but it was also because you got caught."

When police stopped Porter after the robbery, Reed said, Porter immediately complied with the officers' request for a polygraph test and that detaining all the suspects was possible because of her cooperation.

Reed requested 36 months for the mother of four and even read a letter from Porter's 12-year-old daughter, explaining how well Porter's been doing while out on bail. The letter thanked Limbaugh for allowing her mother to remain free and pleaded with him to keep her out of prison.

Reed also said Porter was the only one with a work history and the bank's only chance of recovering some of its losses.

Earlier Monday, Limbaugh sentenced Wright to 70 months in prison for the same two counts: conspiracy to commit a bank robbery and bank robbery. The reduced sentence also was for Wright's cooperation. Otherwise, she could have been sentenced to 108 months in jail.

Wright's attorney, Amanda Oesch, said Wright acted under severe pressure from Clayton.

"[Mrs. Wright] was under an extreme amount of stress," Oesch said. "She had just had a miscarriage, was having marital issues with her husband, and Clayton had a very strong hold on her."

Oesch said Wright is still afraid of Clayton and that Wright had received threats while she was in police custody.

Wright apologized to the judge, saying: "I apologize to the government, the prosecutor and the victims. I accept full responsibility for my actions and am ready to begin on the road to rehabilitation."

Wright previously has been charged with identity fraud and misuse of credit cards.

On Nov. 10, Clayton was sentenced on the three counts of bank robbery, possession of a firearm, furtherance of a crime of violence and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to online court records. The last part of Clayton's sentencing will be Feb. 17.

On Aug. 25, Thompson was sentenced to 121 months in prison with three years of supervised release for the same charges as Porter and Wright, the online records show.

The four must pay $140,014 in restitution to the Kansas Bankers Surety Co. and the First Commercial Bank in Morley.