Howell man faces prison for 2005 bank robbery

On March 22, a Monmouth County jury convicted Nicholas Cipriano, 56, of Howell, of the crimes of second-degree robbery and third degree terroristic threats in connection with a 2005 Freehold Township bank robbery.

According to a press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, as a result of these convictions Cipriano faces up to 20 years in New Jersey state prison with 17.5 years of parole ineligibility when he returns for sentencing before state Superior Court Judge Patricia Del Bueno Cleary, sitting in Freehold, on June 15.

According to the prosecutor, on Sept. 20, 2005 at about 4 p.m., a man described as white, in his mid-50s, with gray hair and wearing white sneakers, black pants and a tan Members Only windbreaker robbed the Provident Bank in the South Freehold (ShopRite) shopping center, Route 9 North, Freehold Township.

The man walked into the bank and handed a teller a note demanding money and threatening to shoot her if she did not cooperate. The teller complied by turning over cash to the man, who then left the bank. While shaken, the teller told other employees what had happened. Bank employees immediately walked outside the bank and saw the man enter a black Nissan Pathfinder with New Jersey plates driving away in the direction of Route 9, according to the press release.

Freehold Township police officers were called and immediately responded to the scene where they were joined by members of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes and Forensic and Technical Services units as well as the FBI. All three agencies coordinated the investigative effort for the bank robber.

Police spread out in the area in an effort to locate the described vehicle. Freehold Township police officers located a truck matching the description of the getaway vehicle in the parking lot adjacent to the Burlington Coat Factory on Route 9, just north of the shopping center where the Provident Bank was robbed.

Law enforcement officers additionally observed a Members Only jacket visible through the windows of the truck. Police conducted surveillance of the vehicle and eventually saw a man matching the description of the bank robber. Police approached the vehicle and apprehended the man, later identified as Nicholas Cipriano, without incident. He was found to be in possession of the money taken from the Provident Bank.

Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin commended the courage and quick response of the bank employees in obtaining a description of the getaway vehicle and the investigative efforts by law enforcement that resulted in the arrest of Cipriano.

Valentin said, "As a result of the immediate response by the Freehold Township police officers, acting with the assistance of the county and federal authorities, this career criminal will spend the better part of the next two decades behind bars."

Cipriano remains incarcerated at the Monmouth County jail, Freehold Township, in lieu of bail set at $500,000 with no 10 percent option.