NYC Serial Bank Robber Sentenced After Violent Holdup While On Parole

QUEENS, NY — A 55-year-old serial bank robber has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after committing a violent robbery of a bank in Queens while on parole in 2023, prosecutors announced.

On April 6, 2023, Gerald DeRosse entered a Ridgewood Savings Bank location on Myrtle Avenue and grabbed an elderly bank customer around the neck, and yelled that he was going to “blow her f-----g brains out” if the bank teller did not give him money, prosecutors said.

The bank teller obeyed DeRosse’s demand and gave him $205 in cash. DeRosse then fled, but he was identified and arrested by the FBI a few weeks later.

DeRosse previously had been convicted of robbery-related crimes on at least seven occasions and was on parole, having served a 13-year sentence for bank robbery at the time he committed this bank robbery. He had been released from state prison less than a month earlier.

"The defendant, a serial bank robber, chose to terrorize hard-working bank tellers and customers, for his own selfish purposes. The victims, including an elderly woman the defendant locked in a chokehold, will never forget that day,” said United States Attorney Breon Peace. “It is a vital part of our mission to protect our community, and my Office will continue to tirelessly prosecute repeat offenders who show no respect for the law.”

DeRosse is required to pay $205 in restitution and $205 in forfeiture. DeRosse pleaded guilty to a robbery charge in May 2024.

“While on parole for a prior bank robbery, Gerald DeRosse once again terrorized our city by committing the same crime in which he utilized an innocent bystander as collateral to ensure his demands were met,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Dennehy. “DeRosse's actions carelessly endangered the lives of others out of personal greed. The FBI will not tolerate repeat offenders who consistently threaten the safety of our city and its citizens.”