Monical pleads guilty to multistate bank robberies - News - MailTribune.com - Medford, OR

Mail Tribune (Medford, OR — Wayback)

2015-10-03

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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation  |  Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED   » NEWS NOW   UCC victims included teacher, teens and adults seeking new starts       ...       Donors sought as field project deadline looms       ...       UPDATED: Names of UCC shooting victims released       ...       UCC victims included teacher, teens and adults seeking new starts       ...       Donors sought as field project deadline looms       ...       UPDATED: Names of UCC shooting victims released       ...           BANK ROBBERY Monical pleads guilty to multistate bank robberies Convicted robber already serving 34-year sentence Comment By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 29, 2015 at 4:48 PM By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 29, 2015 at 4:48 PM »  Social News Convicted bank robber and jail escapee Bradley William Monical pleaded guilty Monday to additional counts of robbing banks in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Monical, 45, entered guilty pleas on multiple counts of armed bank robbery and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime in U.S. District Court in Medford. He admitted to robbing Sterling Savings Bank branches in Medford and Klamath Falls, a Bank of America in Redmond, a Wells Fargo in Idaho and Banner Bank in Washington in 2010. Monical faces a 32-year prison sentence for the string of bank robberies. His sentencing is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 23. He is already serving a 34-year prison sentence and would serve the new 32-year sentence at the same time, leading to no new additional prison time. Monical received the 34-year sentence for robbing PremierWest Bank in Ashland in 2010, robbing a Sterling Savings Bank in Coos Bay in 2011 and escaping from Jackson County Jail in 2012 while he was awaiting trial for the Ashland robbery. Monical leaped from the jail's rooftop exercise yard to a nearby tree to make his escape. Trees around the yard were later cut down. U.S. Marshals recaptured him nearly a year later in Oregon City. Speaking in court with his hands cuffed to a chain around his waist, Monical said he is having a difficult time in prison and has been in solitary confinement for the last 20 months. "I might lose my mind," he said. Monical's string of bank robberies was broken in Coos Bay in 2011 when law enforcement personnel happened to be in the neighborhood when he robbed a bank in that town. His DNA was then matched to evidence from the Ashland bank robbery case, said Monical's defense attorney, Terry Kolkey. Monical used a series of disguises while robbing banks, including a ski mask and a bicycle helmet, bandana and sunglasses. In some cases, he escaped riding a mountain bike, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Judith Harper. The weapons he used included a semi-automatic handgun and a replica handgun, according to court testimony and an indictment. At many of the banks, Monical jumped on counters or over counters, threw bags at tellers and demanded they fill them with money — all while brandishing a weapon, Harper said. At one of the banks, he cocked his gun at a teller he thought was moving too slowly, she said. The amounts he was able to steal varied widely. He took approximately $1,332 in Redmond and $16,091 in Medford, according to an indictment. Staff reporter Vickie Aldous can be reached at 541-776-4486 or [email protected] . Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/VickieAldous . By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Posted Jun. 29, 2015 at 4:48 PM » Comment or view comments   Reader Reaction »  STAY INFORMED   Email NewsLetter   Sign Up Today   Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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