Man Admits To Robbing Bank With Inside Help
Published: Aug 14, 2007
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TAMPA - Bibi Lall, suspected of helping rob the bank she managed, failed a polygraph test and crumbled under intense questioning.
The robber, she told investigators, had forced her to help in the theft of $125,000 in October from the Trustco Bank in Apollo Beach, according to court records. Lall said the robber threatened to tell her husband she was having an affair, so she went along, fearful of losing her two young children.
Lall, 35, pleaded guilty last month to bank robbery and was set to testify at trial this week against the man she says manipulated her, 46-year-old Paul Anthony Graham.
She never had to.
Graham reached his own deal Monday. The charge they both pleaded guilty to carries a maximum of 25 years in prison.
On the eve of Graham's trial, he managed to shake Lall's version of the crime. "He wasn't threatening her," said his attorney, Mark G. Rodriguez.
Yes, Graham did know about Lall's affair. He met her through the boyfriend, Rodriguez said. Graham says the robbery was Lall's idea, that she had embezzled about $6,000 from the bank and wanted to cover it up.
"She brought it up," Rodriguez said. "He agreed to it."
Deal Struck At Last Minute
Graham produced proof that Lall was a willing participant: The night before the robbery, Graham, his ex-wife, their adult daughter and Lall went to a jazz concert in a park. They all relaxed and had a good time, and there were reliable witnesses, Rodriguez said.
The prosecution verified what Graham said and agreed to a deal at the last minute. Graham pleaded guilty to bank robbery and aiding and abetting. The remaining charge of carrying a firearm during a bank robbery will be dropped.
Lall's attorney insisted his client was a victim of blackmail.
"Although Mr. Graham might not have been the one who was doing the blackmailing, there was a certain amount of blackmailing being done by the boyfriend," said the attorney, Ronald Smith. "The money was split between the boyfriend and Graham. My client didn't see a nickel. … All she got was fired and probably going to get a prison term."
Smith said Lall worked at the bank about two years.
This was, Smith said, "a true love story that went awfully bad for the woman. She was pretty much used and abused by these two gentlemen."
Smith said Lall met the boyfriend, a Georgia resident identified by only one name in court papers, through the Internet. They had an affair that lasted about a year, Smith said.
It was not clear Monday whether the government plans to bring more charges against Lall. U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman Steve Cole said, "We are reviewing our options at this time."
Lall could not be reached for comment Monday.
Polygraph Test Raised Doubts
According to court documents, here is how the robbery happened:
Graham walked into the bank just before 1 p.m. Oct. 21.
Teller James Scholder had begun his closing procedures and was in the vault.
Lall and Graham went to the vault area. Graham pulled up his shirt to display a semiautomatic handgun and forced the teller to empty money from the vault into a black gym bag.
Graham took the teller to the ATM room, where the bank's security video equipment was kept. He forced the teller to lie down, took the teller's necktie and tied his hands.
After a few minutes, Lall opened the door to the ATM room and took the security video from the VCR before shutting the door.
The teller freed himself and found Lall tied up with her pantyhose. She told him to hit the panic alarm.
Two days later, Hillsborough County sheriff's detectives asked Lall to take a polygraph test. When the examiner concluded Lall was being deceptive, she was questioned again.
After nearly two hours of intense interrogation, Lall gave detectives her version of the crime.
Reporter Elaine Silvestrini can be reached at (813) 259-7837 or
