Willie Edward McGee, Jr., a truck driver from Rocky Mount, has been charged federally in connection with a bank robbery and subsequent shootout with police last Friday. The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Sunday that McGee faces charges including armed bank robbery and discharging a firearm during the commission of a violent crime.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that McGee allegedly not only robbed a bank but also threatened civilians with explosives and fired on police officers, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. McGee faces up to 20 years in prison for the bank robbery charge and a mandatory minimum of 10 years for discharging a firearm during the crime, with sentences expected to run consecutively.
The incident began when McGee entered a First Citizens Bank in Zebulon, using the threat of explosives to demand cash from a teller and fleeing with $3,234. Surveillance footage showed him escaping in a semi-truck. Later, Rocky Mount Police confronted McGee in a Hobby Lobby parking lot, where he fired at officers with a Ruger AR 5.56 rifle. McGee was struck during the shootout and taken into custody; no officers or members of the public were injured.
United States Attorney Ellis Boyle stated that federal charges would be pursued against anyone who fires at law enforcement. During McGee’s arrest, officers recovered the AR rifle and a handgun from his waistband. FBI and SBI bomb technicians secured the area to ensure there were no explosive threats.
The investigation involving the FBI, ATF, North Carolina SBI, Zebulon Police Department, and Rocky Mount Police Department is ongoing. Anyone with information about the alleged crimes can contact the FBI at (704) 672-6100. McGee remains in custody on federal charges and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
