On June 15, Nicholas Cipriano, 56, of Howell, was sentenced to 18 years in state prison with more than 15 years and three months of parole ineligibility in connection with a 2005 Freehold Township bank robbery. On March 22, a jury found Cipriano guilty of the crimes of second-degree robbery and third-degree terroristic threats, according to a press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.
Testimony at the trial revealed that on Sept. 20, 2005, at about 4 p.m., a man described as white, in his mid 50s, with gray hair and wearing white sneakers, black pants and a tan Members Only windbreaker robbed the Provident Bank at 3585 Route 9, Freehold Township, in the South Freehold shopping center. The man walked into the bank and handed a teller a note demanding money and threatening to shoot her if she did not cooperate. The teller complied by turning over cash to the man, who then left the bank. While shaken, the teller told other employees what had happened. Bank employees immediately walked outside the bank and saw the man enter a black Nissan Pathfinder with New Jersey plates and drive away in the direction of Route 9.
Freehold Township police were called and immediately responded to the scene where they were joined by members of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the FBI. All three agencies coordinated the investigative effort for the bank robber. Police spread out in the area in an effort to locate the described vehicle, according to the press release.
A short time later Freehold Township police officers located a vehicle matching the description of the getaway vehicle in the parking lot adjacent to the Burlington Coat Factory on Route 9 north, which is in a shopping plaza connected to the South Freehold shopping center. Law enforcement officers additionally observed a Members Only jacket visible through the windows of the truck.
Police conducted surveillance of the vehicle and eventually saw a man matching the description of the bank robber. Police approached the vehicle and apprehended the man, later identified as Cipriano, without incident. He was found to be in possession of the money taken from the Provident Bank.
According to the press release, a second-degree robbery charge normally carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison. As a result of Cipriano’s prior history of violent crimes, including two prior convictions for first-degree armed robbery, state Superior Court Judge Patricia Del Buono Cleary, sitting in Freehold, granted the state’s motion to impose an extended term of incarceration upon Cipriano.
Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin commended the courage and quick response of the bank employees in obtaining a description of the getaway vehicle and the solid investigative efforts by law enforcement that resulted in the arrest of Cipriano.
“As a result of the immediate response by the Freehold Township police officers, acting with the assistance of the county and federal authorities, this career criminal will spend the better part of the next two decades behind bars,” Valentin said.