A Hyde Park man with a big historical past of theft will spend seven years in jail for robbing a neighborhood financial institution of about $13,600 with only a BB gun.
Paul Whooten, 59, pleaded responsible in federal courtroom in Boston to at least one rely of armed financial institution theft again in January and on Wednesday was sentenced to seven years in jail to be adopted by 5 years of supervised launch.
“Give me all your money,” Whooten allegedly advised a Hyde Park Rockland Trust Bank 4 days earlier than Christmas in 2019. He carried what gave the impression to be an assault-style rifle and was decked out in a particular outfit of an extended, cark coat over a yellow and black reflective jacket with a brilliant yellow hood, in addition to sun shades, a black knit cap, a masks and gloves.
Whooten walked out of the financial institution with $13,603 from the until. A Boston Police officer stationed contained in the financial institution broadcasted Whooten’s description and the course he fled, and he was quickly — mere “minutes later” in response to the protection’s sentencing memo — discovered by one other officer solely slightly methods outdoors of the financial institution within the 1000-block of Truman Parkway.
The officer took cowl behind his cruiser and advised Whooten to drop his weapon. Whooten did as he was advised and dropped the weapon and the light-colored purchasing bag containing the cash.
“During a post-Miranda interview after his apprehension,” prosecutors wrote of their Tuesday sentencing memo, “when asked which bank was the last he had robbed, the defendant replied, ‘This one right here.’”
According to sentencing memos, Whooten has since 1999 served near 20 years in jail, each state and federal, for theft convictions.
His protection legal professional, arguing for a shorter sentence of 70 months — or 5 years and 10 months — that Whooten performed the theft below the affect of benzodiazepines and “was struggling tremendously in the days and weeks leading up to the robbery due to a combination of chronic mental health problems and related drug abuse.”
“These have been the root causes of most, if not all, of his criminal history and they have never been adequately addressed through treatment,” lawyer Oscar Cruz, Jr., of the Boston Federal Public Defender workplace, wrote.
“It is only now, after years of trial and error, that he has a clear-eyed understanding of why he has acted in the manner he has in the past. He has a sober appreciation of the harm he has caused in committing this robbery. He truly regrets his actions and is now able to see his past … from a different perspective,” he continued.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”