Tewksbury Man Pleads Guilty to Bank Robbery

BOSTON – A Tewksbury man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to bank robbery.

Nicholas O’Neil, 39, pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery before U.S. Senior District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock who scheduled sentencing for June 5, 2023. O’Neil was charged in October 2020. 

On Sept. 22, 2020, an individual – later identified as O’Neil – entered a Santander Bank branch in Tewksbury, handed the teller a demand note and a red cloth bag. After obtaining cash from the teller, O’Neill exited the bank and sped away in a white pickup truck which was reported to police by a banking customer who had observed the robbery and followed the vehicle. The pickup truck was located a short time later and O’Neil was arrested without incident. The red cloth bag containing the stolen cash and demand note was found inside the vehicle. 

The charge of bank robbery provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Tewksbury Police Chief Ryan M. Columbus made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Rollins’ Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.