A man who robbed banks in Denver and Colorado Springs met his match this week when a federal judge effectively gave him a life sentence in federal prison.
Sammy Edward French, 56, was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Chief Judge Wiley Daniel to 30 years in prison. He was taken from the courtroom to begin serving his sentence immediately.
In August, a federal jury listened for five days to testimony in French’s trial, then took only 90 minutes to convict him of robbing seven banks.
The robberies, three of which were armed, took place in May, June and July of 2006. They included several World Bank branches in Denver and Colorado Springs, two Key Bank branches in Colorado Springs, and the Canon National Bank in Colorado Springs.
At the end of his robbery spree, French pulled out a gun and robbed a woman in her car, a crime for which he also was convicted.
French, formerly of Colorado Springs, previously had served eight years in federal prison for a 1995 bank-robbery conviction.
His record also includes charges involving drugs, forgery, menacing, trespassing, fighting and manufacturing fake license plates.
Neither French nor his public defender, Robert Pepin, could be reached for comment.
Mike McPhee: 303-954-1409 or mmcphee@denverpost.com
