Columbus man sentenced to prison time for robbing three local banks in five days
As Columbus went into a COVID-19 lockdown last spring, 50-year-old Jason Sloan Arnold went out and robbed banks.
And he did not wear a mask.
Now Arnold’s going to spend more than seven years in federal prison, as U.S. District Court Judge Clay Land sentenced the Columbus man, and ordered him to pay $5,023 in restitution.
Investigators said Arnold’s pattern was always the same: He walked in, handed a teller a note demanding money, and walked out with cash. Bank security cameras got a clear picture of his face every time.
He was captured after Columbus police used those images to ask the public’s help in identifying the suspect.
“Thanks to the help from our partners at the Columbus Police Department, we were able to expediently get him off the streets before he could terrorize anyone else, and now he will be kept off the streets for a long time,” said Chris Hacker, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Atlanta office.
These are the banks Arnold pleaded guilty to robbing:
- The Synovus Bank, 1700 10th Avenue, on March 17.
- The Wells Fargo Bank, 1607 Bradley Park Drive, on March 18.
- The Wells Fargo Bank, 3436 Victory Drive, on March 21.
FBI agents and Columbus police arrested Arnold the following April 1. He confessed to all three robberies, authorities said.
They said he already had an extensive criminal record that included five felony theft convictions, and convictions for robbery and for escape.
After 90 months in prison, Arnold is to have three years of supervised release.