Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte today sentenced Christopher Michael Cline, a/k/a “Carisa Cline,” age 46, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, to 24 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, after the defendant pleaded guilty to bank robbery. The defendant also admitted violating two terms of supervised release for previous federal bank robbery convictions.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department; and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy.
According to the plea agreement and other court documents, between January 28 and February 8, 2021, less than three months after being released from prison for a federal bank robbery conviction, Cline committed a series of bank robberies in Gaithersburg Maryland. Specifically, Cline attempted to rob a bank in Gaithersburg, Maryland on January 28, 2021, and successfully robbed a different bank in Gaithersburg the next day. Cline also robbed a third Gaithersburg bank on February 8, 2021.
As detailed in court documents, on February 23, 2000, Cline was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for a 1999 bank robbery in Berwyn Heights, Maryland. On October 14, 2004, while serving the final months of that sentence at a residential re-entry facility, Cline absconded and began committing bank robberies the next day. From October 15, 2004, through November 16, 2004, Cline committed a total of 12 bank robberies and one attempted bank robbery. Cline was subsequently convicted of federal bank robbery a second time and sentenced to 188 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Cline was released from prison on November 9, 2020, and began serving the three-year term of supervised release for each of those convictions. By committing the 2021 bank robbery, Cline’s third such conviction, Cline violated the terms of supervised release for both previous bank robbery convictions.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron praised the FBI the Montgomery County Police Department, and the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in this investigation and prosecution. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey J. Izant, who prosecuted the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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