Following a series of bank and credit union robberies that shook the otherwise calm Chicago suburbs, Charles Lawler, 54, has received a prison sentence totaling seven years and eight months. Lawler, a resident of Villa Park, Illinois, carried out a calculated spree of thefts across multiple financial institutions. In a statement obtained by the U.S. Department of Justice, his crimes spanned from September 2021 through April 2022, during which he and his accomplice Tarandle Lee, 45, executed carefully coordinated heists.
Lawler's modus operandi was straightforward: he would enter the banks and deliver demand notes to the tellers. Outside, his co-conspirator Lee, a Bolingbrook, Illinois local, remained ready to facilitate their escape. This duo managed to successfully rob three banks and one credit union together. Lawler then struck again alone, pushing their combined total to five robbed institutions. According to details from the DOJ’s release, Lawler's solo act targeted BMO Harris Bank in Naperville, Illinois, on September 22, 2021.
The series of robberies included hits on Old Second Bank in Lisle on September 28, Bank Financial in Westmont on October 6, and BMO Harris Bank in Woodridge on January 3, 2022. Their last documented robbery was at DuPage Credit Union in Downers Grove on April 14, 2022. U.S. District Judge Robert W. Gettleman handed down Lawler's sentence after he pleaded guilty to the initial three robberies and acknowledged his involvement in the final two. Both Lawler and Lee were apprehended in 2023 and have remained detained since their arrests.
While Lawler has now been sentenced, Lee awaits his judgment. A federal jury in Chicago convicted him earlier this year on all four counts of robbery related to the case. Information regarding Lee's sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled or announced. As this story continues to unfold, contributions to the investigation from local departments, including Downers Grove, Bellwood, Woodridge, and Villa Park Police, prove essential. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alejandro G. Ortega and Jonathan L. Shih represented the government in this case, which was prominently featured in the announcement from United States Attorney Andrew S. Boutros and Special Agent-in-Charge Douglas S. DePodesta of the Chicago FBI Field Office.
