A St. Louis man who robbed a Florissant bank and fired a gun at a witness attempting to follow him was sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison.

U.S. District Judge Rodney W. Sippel sentenced 64-year-old Jeffery Alexander to 138 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery, one count of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The sentencing took place in U.S. District Court in St. Louis.

Alexander admitted to robbing a financial institution located in the 1000 block of North Highway 67 on April 13, 2022. During the robbery, he brandished a handgun and ordered a teller to place money into a bag. At the time, he was wearing a dark rain poncho, a face mask, and blue nitrile gloves to conceal his identity.

A bystander who witnessed the robbery attempted to follow Alexander, prompting him to fire a shot at the individual’s vehicle in an effort to flee the scene. Law enforcement officers quickly tracked him down approximately two miles away, where they found him sitting in a Dodge Ram pickup truck. Inside the vehicle, officers recovered the stolen cash, Alexander’s disguise, and a Hi-Point .40-caliber pistol.

Court records show that Alexander is a previously convicted felon with a criminal history that includes a 20-year prison sentence for an armed robbery committed in Illinois in 1981. He also served a 55-year sentence for a separate armed robbery conviction in the same state.

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