Miami man sentenced to 27 years for armed bank and credit union robberies

MIAMI, Fla.  — A Miami man has been sentenced to prison for committing numerous armed robberies while on federal supervised release, said the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida (USAO).

On January 9, Javonne Wilks, 42, of Miami, a multi-convicted felon, received a sentence of 324 months in prison, five years of supervised release, and a fine for convictions of armed bank robbery, armed credit union robbery, and brandishing a firearm during a violent crime while on federal supervised release.

According to the USAO, on April 6, 2022, Wilks and two co-conspirators entered a bank in Cooper City, Florida, wearing dark-colored skull hats, dark face masks, and coveralls and carrying an AR-15 style long gun and two handguns. Upon entering the lobby, Wilks and his co-conspirators approached two bank tellers who were behind the counter, jumped the counter, and demanded access to the cash drawers and vault.

Wilks and his co-conspirators are said to have then forced two bank employees to lie face down on the ground at gunpoint. Wilks and his co-conspirators fled after stealing $242,113.

On June 6, 2023, Wilks and a co-conspirator entered a credit union in Miami Springs, Florida, wearing sweatshirts, long pants, masks, and bicycle helmets and carrying a semiautomatic handgun and a revolver. Wilks and the co-conspirator entered the credit union, waving their firearms and ordering the employees to go to the lobby.

Wilks and the co-conspirator reportedly then ordered one of the tellers and the manager to open the vault at gunpoint and demanded money. After Wilks and his co-conspirator had placed the manager on his knees and patted him down, the teller complied and put money from the vault into Wilks and his co-conspirator’s duffel bag, said the USAO.

Then, Wilks and his co-conspirator demanded more money, so another teller put additional money into the duffel bag. Wilks and the co-conspirator fled after stealing around $29,000.

Later that day, law enforcement officers arrested Wilks. Inside Wilks’s vehicle, law enforcement officers found about $11,395 in cash, three coveralls consistent with the ones worn during the bank robbery, and bait money (bills with known serial numbers that banks use to aid the tracing of bank robbers) from the credit union robbery.

In 2005, Wilks was sentenced to 212 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release for possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was on federal supervised release when he committed the armed robberies.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI, Miami Field Office, announced the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith.

FBI Miami investigated the case with assistance from the Broward Sheriff’s Office, Miami Police Department, Miami-Dade Police Department, Miami Gardens Police Department, South Miami Police Department, and Miami Springs Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ajay J. Alexander is prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jorge Roberto Delgado is handling asset forfeiture.