Dallas Woman Sentenced in East Texas Bank Robbery & Carjacking

TYLER – A 24-year-old Dallas woman has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for her role in a series of violent crimes in East Texas. Chanel Collins had pleaded guilty on Apr. 8, 2016, to aiding in the commission of a car-jacking and bank robbery. According to information presented in court, on Mar. 13, 2015, Collins drove LaQuaylan Patterson from Wood County to an apartment complex in Tyler so that he could commit an armed carjacking.

Once they arrived at the complex, Patterson got out of Collins’ car, armed with a semiautomatic pistol, and told Collins to wait for his signal to her cell phone. Patterson then approached a woman who was visiting her mother at the complex, brandished his pistol, and demanded the woman’s car keys. The woman surrendered the keys and Patterson got into her car and drove away. Patterson signaled Collins and she also departed the complex in her car. Collins and Patterson then drove the vehicles back to Wood County.

Later that day, Patterson used the stolen car to commit the second armed bank robbery. Collins drove her vehicle to a car wash in Big Sandy and waited for Patterson as he robbed the 1st National Bank of Gilmer’s Big Sandy branch. Patterson drove the stolen vehicle to the bank, brandished a pistol, climbed behind the teller counter, and demanded money from the tellers. The tellers stood aside as Patterson removed $29,734 from two cash drawers and put the money in a bag.

Patterson then fled the bank with the cash and drove away in the stolen vehicle to meet Collins at the carwash. Once there, Patterson abandoned the stolen vehicle and fled with Collins in her vehicle. Collins and Patterson were indicted by a federal grand jury on June 17, Patterson, 25, of Lancaster, was recently sentenced to 171 months in federal prison.