Is the 'Former Marine' Who Foiled a Bank Robbery Actually a Convicted Bank Bomber?

The self-described former Marine and police officer who thwarted an attempted bank robbery in Cocoa, Fla. on Monday may not be quite who he says he is.

Eugene Storley, 65, stepped in after a suspect police identified as Edward Sotelo threatened a Wells Fargo bank teller with gun. Storley and the suspect struggled and the suspect ran away, only to be captured later by police.

Eugene Storley, 65, thwarted an attempted bank robbery in Cocoa, Fla. on Monday. He claimed to be a retired Florida police officer, despite no records to that effect. (Image source: Space Coast Daily)

Storley told multiple news outlets he is a Marine Corps veteran and former Miami police officer, but as the Space Coast Daily reported Saturday, not only is there no record of Storley as a Florida law enforcement officer, he pleaded guilty to bombing a bank in New Jersey in the 1970s:

A Federal Agent refuted Storley’s claims of service as a U.S. Marine Veteran and law enforcement officer. The agent also detailed Storley’s conviction for the bombing of the National State Bank in Trenton, New Jersey in 1977. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said they have no record of Storley ever being a law enforcement officer in the state of Florida.

According to news archives from the Trenton Times provided to TheBlaze, Eugene Storley pleaded guilty to bombing the National State Bank in Trenton in 1977. Storley, a former bar bouncer, was arrested by Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents after bragging about the bombing to neighbors. The charge carried a maximum 10-year prison sentence. It's unknown how much prison time Storley served.

Efforts by TheBlaze to contact Storley on Saturday were unsuccessful.

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