By Jeff Lipton
The defendant, Michael Miller, 41, of Levittown, pleaded guilty on Dec. 10 to 17 counts of third-degree robbery. Miller, who escaped with more than $50,000 during his bank robbery spree, was promised the sentence in exchange for his guilty plea. He was facing a maximum of 2-1/3-to-7 years on each count if the case went to trial, according to Chris Munzing, a spokesman for Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice.
Miller is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 16, and was also ordered to pay$50,687 in restitution, Rice said.
Rice said Miller walked into Washington Mutual Bank in Franklin Square on Oct. 27, 2006 and handed a teller a note demanding money, which he was given. He then committed 16 more bank heists in similar fashion, through May 2008 before being arrested on June 3, Rice said.
Law enforcement agents dubbed Miller "the Diamond Note" bandit because his hand-written notes to the tellers contained O's and Q's in the shape of diamonds. The notes allowed investigators to tie him to each heist as well, Rice said.
"Mr. Miller, a one-man crime wave, will now suffer the consequences of his actions, thanks to a tireless investigation by the Nassau County Police Department," Rice said. "His blatant disregard for the laws of our society and the safety of our communities has led Mr. Miller's case to this inevitable conclusion. We were fully prepared to take Mr. Miller to trial before he took responsibility for his actions."
Detective Sgt. John Giambrone of the Nassau County Robbery Squad, which spent almost two years on the investigation, said he was thrilled with the outcome of the case.
"The detectives who had the case were involved in a very difficult and prolonged investigation," said Giambrone, who credited Detective William Butler with leading the investigation. "He did a great job working closely with the Nassau County district attorney.
"It was a good outcome, with the plea that was agreed to, and the fact that we did not have to bring all the victim-tellers to a trial, which saved time and effort," Giambrone added. "I'm very happy with the conclusion to this case."
Tara Onorato, a legal aid attorney representing Miller, did not return calls for comment.
As of Dec. 9, Giambrone said, 81 bank robberies were committed thus far this year, with detectives closing out many cases with arrests of serial robbers such as Miller. There were 46 bank robberies committed during the same period last year.
