Port St. Lucie Man Sentenced to 15 years in Prison for Third Bank Robbery Conviction

MIAMI - A Port St. Lucie man was sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to bank robbery, which is his third such conviction.

David Abram Ziesel, 45, previously pled guilty to robbing a bank in Fellsmere, Fla. According to court records, in January of 2024, Ziesel entered the bank with his face and head covered, and immediately began shouting, "This is a robbery!" Ziesel demanded bank employees put cash in his pillowcase, and then Ziesel fled the bank. Law enforcement officers quickly located Ziesel's vehicle as it traveled at speeds of over 100 m.p.h. Ziesel then led officers on a high-speed chase down I-95 and into the City of Fort Pierce, weaving in and out of cars, driving down the wrong side of the road, and running red lights. The pursuit ended when Ziesel crashed his car into another vehicle, and it came to rest against a power pole.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, and Jeffrey B. Veltri, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

FBI Miami investigated this case with assistance from the Fellsmere Police Department, Florida Highway Patrol, and Indian River County Sheriff's Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Hoover is prosecuting the case.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-14009.

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