Suspect pleads guilty to robbery Man to be sentenced on multiple charges in Bangor bank heist

BANGOR – A Portland man pleaded guilty Tuesday to robbing a Bank of America branch near the Bangor Mall.

Niall G. Clarke, 26, was arrested shortly after the Oct. 4 robbery on southbound Interstate 95 with more than $11,000 in a black mesh bag, according to court documents.

He also had a loaded .38-caliber handgun and a box of ammunition in the 1997 Chevy Lumina he was driving.

Clarke pleaded guilty Tuesday in U.S. District Court to:

. Armed bank robbery.

. Brandishing a firearm during the commission of a federal crime of violence.

. Lying on an application to buy a gun.

. Unlawful possession of a firearm.

Clarke originally pleaded not guilty to the charges on Nov. 2, a week after being indicted by a federal grand jury.

Clarke faces up to 25 years in federal prison on the armed robbery charge and a mandatory minimum of a consecutive seven years for using a gun during the robbery. He also faces up to 10 years in federal prison on the firearms violation counts.

His sentencing date has not been set, but it is not expected to be scheduled until after a presentence report has been completed. That could take longer than the average six to eight weeks because Clarke is Irish and a check of his criminal history in Ireland is required.

In pleading guilty, Clarke also agreed to forfeit the gun and the ammunition which he admitted buying the day before the robbery at Maine Military Supply Inc. on Wilson Street in Brewer.

He admitted that he lied when he stated on the application form to purchase the handgun that he was a U.S. citizen and, as a result, illegally possessed the gun he brandished at the bank.

Clarke entered the U.S. a year ago through Boston and was to have left the country in April. He is expected to be deported to Ireland after completing his sentence.

It could not be determined Tuesday why Clarke was living in Portland.