A federal judge on Tuesday threw the book at a serial bank robber who was already on parole when he choked and threatened to kill an 81-year-old woman during an “alarming” Queens heist.
Gerald DeRosse, 55, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for the April 6, 2023 robbery at Ridgewood Savings Bank in Glendale, during which he terrorized the elderly victim and threatened to “blow her f—ing brains out” if the teller didn’t fork over the cash.
DeRosse made off with just $205, federal prosecutors said in a release.
“This case impacts your community,” US District Judge William Kuntz told the career thief. “This case impacts your family. But ultimately it impacts you.”
In court, DeRosse wore a beige jumpsuit, glasses and had hair slicked back — and appeared in good spirits until he was hit with the sentence and berated for his life of crime.
He has 10 prior convictions, among them four robbery raps that records show landed him in state prison at least twice — including a 13-year state prison stint on a 2011 felony robbery charge.
The career criminal was last paroled from the upstate Wyoming Correctional Facility on March 9, 2023.
Less than a month later, he stormed into the Queens bank and “chose to terrorize hard-working bank tellers and customers,” US Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement.
“The victims, including an elderly woman the defendant locked in a chokehold, will never forget that day,” Peace said. “It is a vital part of our mission to protect our community, and my office will continue to tirelessly prosecute repeat offenders who show no respect for the law.”
Assistant US Attorney Rebecca Schuman said in court Tuesday that DeRosse “terrified every person in the bank purposely,” not just the elderly woman.
“It’s his MO. He has a long pattern of committing crimes,” Schuman said. “He was on release from a decade-plus long sentence. We are talking about someone who regularly committed crimes every time he is released into the community.”
Defense attorney Nora Hirozawa countered that her client’s difficult life “was a serious driver” for his violent criminal behavior over more than three decades.
“He self medicated with cocaine, crack cocaine, and then heroin,” Hirozawa said. “He did not receive any long term medical mental health treatment.
“He is someone who feels happy and stable when he has something to do. When he is contributing to other people’s lives,” she said. “There were interpersonal issues that triggered a relapse after building stability. He was quite clear — he accepted responsibility immediately.”
The lawyer added that “the visual of seeing himself holding an older woman was jarring to him.”
She said he’s also had a rough go with other inmates since being locked up again, including getting a black eye three weeks ago when he was jumped by three younger inmates.
