Brighton Bank Robbery Case Dismissed, Shifts To Federal Court
August 1, 2019
The case against a Lansing man charged with robbing a local bank more than three years ago has been dismissed so that charges can be pursued in federal court.
Court records show a dismissal order was filed Tuesday regarding the case against 35-year-old Brian Dewayne Ali Jr. in Livingston County Circuit Court. Those charges have been added to a superseding 12-count indictment issued July 16th in U.S. District Court in Detroit. Ali was charged locally as a result of the April 2016 robbery of the PNC Bank located on West Grand River in Genoa Township. Police say Ali disguised himself by dressing as a woman and wearing makeup and a wig. They say he then entered the bank brandishing a handgun and what appeared to be a bomb and announced a robbery. Afterward, he fled in a blue Ford Mustang with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Ali is set to stand trial in federal court October 15th where he faces various counts of armed robbery, bank robbery, unlawful imprisonment and being a habitual offender. In addition to the Genoa Township bank robbery, he is also charged with six armed robberies that occurred in Oakland and Macomb counties between December 2015 and February of 2016. (DK/JK)