WEST OCEAN CITY — One of two Pennsylvania men arrested last July in connection with the robbery of the PNC Bank in West Ocean City reversed his course this week in U.S. District Court, pleading guilty to all of the charges against him related to the bank robbery here and others in the Keystone State.
Heath Derizzo, 37, of Harrisburg, Pa., charged in the July 23, 2013 robbery of the PNC Bank on Route 50 in West Ocean City, was charged initially in Worcester County Circuit Court for his role in the local robbery, but was later indicted in U.S. District Court for the robbery here along with several other similar robberies in Pennsylvania during the same time period.
Derizzo’s co-conspirator, Dale Mentzer, 35, of Newmantown, Pa., was found guilty by a Worcester County jury in April of robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery for his role in the West Ocean City bank robbery and was sentenced in June to 15 years. Mentzer has also been charged in U.S. District Court for his role in the Pennsylvania robberies and was scheduled for an initial appearance on Thursday.
When Derizzo had his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in April, he pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him. Back in court on Tuesday, Derizzo changed his tune and pleaded guilty to all of the charges against him for the West Ocean City robbery and the Pennsylvania robberies. Sentencing has been set for Oct. 7.
Shortly after 9 a.m. last July 23, 2013, Derizzo entered the PNC Bank branch on Route 50 and demanded money, while Mentzer waited in the shopping center parking lot. After handing the teller a note and receiving a bag of money, Derizzo fled the bank and went to the waiting car with Mentzer behind the wheel. During Mentzer’s trial in Worcester County Circuit Court in April, Derizzo testified the pair, who he called “career criminals,” came to Ocean City with a female acquaintance and lived it up for two days on a crack cocaine binge and blew through the $2,500 they brought with them.
Out of money, Derizzo and Mentzer told the female acquaintance to stay behind at the Ocean City motel room while they “went to do their thing.” The pair then drove over to West Ocean City where they waited at the nearby WaWa for the PNC Bank to open. According to Derizzo’s testimony, he and Mentzer scrounged through the vehicle to find enough money to buy breakfast sandwiches while the planned the bank robbery.
After Derizzo held up the bank, he and Mentzer collected their female friend and drove west toward Salisbury.
Maryland State Police and Worcester County Sheriff’s Office investigators continued to follow up on leads and search for the two suspects in the hours following the West Ocean City bank robbery. Later that same night, Derizzo and Mentzer were located in a motel room in Salisbury and were taken into custody without further incident.
Search warrants were issued and executed on the motel room in Salisbury where Derizzo and Mentzer were found and arrested and evidence was collected connecting them to the West Ocean City bank robbery earlier that day. The investigation revealed Derizzo was also wanted by the Pennsylvania State Police on an outstanding warrant for parole violations and additional charges for robbery. Mentzer was also wanted in Pennsylvania for an outstanding arrest warrant for armed robbery.
Following the arrest of Mentzer and Derizzo in Salisbury last July, Pennsylvania authorities were alerted they had been taken into custody and an extended investigation into their possible involvement in a series of bank robberies there was undertaken.