PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A Providence man with an extensive criminal history will spend nearly five years behind bars for robbing a bank last year, according to United States Attorney Zachary Cunha.
Roldy Francois, 38, was convicted on charges of bank robbery and violating the terms of federal supervised release.
Cunha said Francois walked into the bank in April 2021, pointed what appeared to be a firearm at the tellers and threatened to “shoot this place up.” Francois was arrested following a brief chase, according to prosecutors, and was found to have a toy gun in his possession.
The robbery happened six months after Francois completed a 12-year prison sentence on a slew of illegal firearm charges.
Cunha said Francois was caught with five handguns back in 2011, which he acquired using a stolen identity.
In 2007, Francois was also convicted of felony domestic assault for stabbing his then-girlfriend in the leg. He was apprehended following a six-hour standoff with police.
Francois will serve the next 57 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised released. The first six months of that supervised release will be served at a residential reentry facility, according to Cunha.
