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Persistent offender sentenced to 20 years; man who robbed BB&T in Covington has 26 felony convictions


NKyTribune staff report

Kenton Circuit Judge Patricia Summe has sentenced Brian Joseph Ramsey of Newport to 20 years in prison.

Ramsey, 25, who robbed a BB&T Bank branch on Scott Street in Covington in December, was found guilty of 2nd Degree Robbery and 2 counts of Tampering With Evidence in June. He was convicted as a 1st Degree Persistent Felony Offender .

Ramsey

Ramsey

He had 25 prior felony convictions and, despite his young age, has served the bulk of his adult life behind bars.

Ramsey served just seven of the 32 years he was sentenced to for his felony convictions. He was out of prison just three months before robbing the BB&T branch last year.

Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Sanders said “Kentucky’s lax parole laws are one of prosecutors’ biggest frustrations.”

Here is a link that details the bulk of Ramsey’s criminal history, dating back to 2008.

The Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney issued the following statement chronicling the events that lead to the most recent conviction and sentencing:

On December 28, 2015, a man walked into the BB&T Bank on Scott Street next door to the Kenton County Courthouse and handed the teller a note that read “I have a gun! Put the $ on the counter!”

The robber had his hand in his coat pocket. Fearing the man may have a gun, the teller complied and handed over the cash in her drawer. The robber then fled out of the building as the teller dialed 911. Covington Police arrived within seconds.

After looking at BB&T’s security video, the Officer Mike Gilliland recognized him as a man he’d seen crossing Madison Avenue towards the NKY Convention Center. Security video there showed the man heading into the Mariott Hotel across the street. After the man wasn’t located in the hotel, Officer Brian McErlane went behind the Ohio River floodwall where he located the note used to rob the bank and muddy footprints headed west.

Police then began to search the hotels and businesses near the floodwall between the Mariott and the Brent Spence Bridge. Detective Jim West found video footage of the bank robber entering the Extended Stay hotel where he deposited his coat and hat in a trash can. Detective West found the discarded clothes in the same can and took them into evidence.

Hotel employees said the man called a cab after learning there were no rooms available. A witness saw the man enter a large SUV taxi cab and leave the scene.

Fortunately, large SUV cabs are fairly rare. Detectives Jim Miskanin and Jon Mangus made quick work of tracking down the cabbie who said he dropped the robber at the Florence Mall. The cabbie also told detectives the fare asked him to return to the mall in two hours to pick him up.

Detectives waited with the cabbie till their robber called for his ride. Little did he know his next ride would be in a police car rather than a cab.

Covington Police and Florence Police lurked nearby as the cab pulled up to the mall. When their suspect exited the mall, the cabbie sped off and police swooped in to make the arrest.

Detectives identified their suspect as Brian Joseph Ramsey, but Ramsey wasn’t wearing the same clothing. Mall security video showed Ramsey went on a shopping spree in the hours after the bank robbery. Before splurging on a new TV, DVD player, and movies, Ramsey bought a whole new outfit.

Security footage showed Ramsey entering a mall bathroom wearing the same clothing as the bank robber (minus the discarded jacket and hat), exiting in his newly purchased attire, and depositing a bag full of something in the mall’s trash. Ramsey still had $974 on his person in addition to over $600 in merchandise from various stores.

Detective Miskanin seized Ramsey’s cell phone at the time of arrest. A subsequent search warrant executed on the phone would confirm it was the same phone used to call the cabbie. When Officer Jim Isaacs entered the phone number into Facebook search, Ramsey’s profile popped up.

Kenton Commonwealth's Attorney Rob Sanders said

Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Sanders said “Kentucky’s lax parole laws are one of prosecutors’ biggest frustrations.”

A quick survey of Ramsey’s Facebook photos revealed a picture of Ramsey wearing the same hat worn in the bank robbery and deposited in the hotel trash can, posted to Facebook only two days earlier.

A week after the robbery, Detective Miskanin received information from another inmate indicating Ramsey still had money from the bank robbery concealed from view. Miskanin obtained a search warrant for Ramsey’s person and found Ramsey had been concealing $250 in his rectum since the robbery a week earlier.

Ramsey was indicted by the Kenton County Grand Jury for 2nd Degree Robbery, 2 counts of Tampering With Evidence, and 1st Degree Persistent Felony Offender. The case was called for trial before Kenton Circuit Judge Patricia Summe on June 1, 2016

Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Sanders and Asst. Commonwealth’s Attorney Emily Arnzen presented over a dozen witnesses and fifty exhibits during the two day trial. After closing arguments, the jury deliberated for six minutes before rendering a verdict finding Ramsey guilty of 2nd Degree Robbery and 2 counts of Tampering With Evidence.

During the sentencing phase of the trial, the prosecutors presented evidence of Ramsey’s 23 prior felony convictions (Editor’s Note: Ramsey actually had 25 prior felony convictions but prosecutors did not receive two of the certified convictions prior to trial so only twenty-three convictions were presented to the jury).

Evidence showed Ramsey served only seven years of his total 32 years of sentences and was out of prison less than three months before he robbed BB&T. The jury deliberated for twenty-seven minutes before finding Ramsey guilty of being a 1st Degree Persistent Felony Offender and recommending the maximum twenty year sentence.

Sanders called Ramsey’s criminal history “utterly amazing” especially when considering he is only twenty five years of age. Sanders also said “Kentucky’s lax parole laws are one of prosecutors’ biggest frustrations.”

On July 18, 2016, Ramsey appeared before Judge Summe again for formal, final sentencing. The judge heard arguments from both parties before sentencing Ramsey to 20 in prison noting she found no reason to depart from the recommendation of the jury given Ramsey’s criminal history. Ramsey will be eligible for parole (again) after serving ten years.


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