Robber will spend 16 years in prison for targeting Medford banks

Medford, Ore.- A man who robbed three Medford banks over the course of a year will spend more than 16 years in federal prison.

Jeffrey Edward Ownby, 30, was sentenced Thursday for committing three armed bank robberies using a sawed-off shotgun. He will spend 198 months in prison and was ordered to pay restitution to his victims.

In each robbery, Ownby wore disguises and showed firearms to customers and employees. On May 16, 2014, Ownby entered the Bank of the Cascades wearing a gray bandana and carrying a drawstring bag. He pulled a handgun, swung it around and told everyone to “get on the ground.” He said, “you know what this is” before putting the bag on a desk and demanding employees fill it with money. He made off with more than $5,800.

On Dec. 22, 2014, Ownby entered the Washington Federal Bank wearing a fake beard, camouflage head covering and glasses. He pulled out a handgun, pointed it at the bank tellers and threw a backpack on the counter. That time he ran off with nearly $8,000.

Finally, on April 1, 2015, Ownby entered the American West Bank wearing a hat and fake beard. He pulled a 12-gauge sawed-off shotgun out of his backpack, pointed it at bank personnel and once again put his backpack on the teller counter. Bank tellers put approximately $2,375 in Ownby’s bag.

After spotting his picture on local news reports, some of Ownby’s former co-workers contacted police. When police went to his home, they found the sawed-off shotgun, some of the stolen money, his disguises and a Molotov cocktail. Ownby confessed to the robberies.

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