Summary of Offense:
Fred Anderson was convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of a bank teller, which occurred while he was robbing the United Southern Bank in Mount Dora, Florida. Prior to the robbery of United Southern Bank and the murder of Heather Young, Fred Anderson was on community control for grand theft. As a condition of his community control, Anderson was ordered to pay $4,000 in restitution, but as of March 1999, he had only paid $100. Facing one year at a probation center for violating the conditions of his community control, Anderson decided to rob the United Southern Bank to get the money to pay his restitution. On March 18, 1999, Anderson stole a loaded revolver from one of his neighbors. The next day he visited the United Southern Bank to get the information he needed to thoroughly plan the robbery. Pretending to be a student doing research for a finance paper, he met with one of the bank managers. Anderson took particular note of where the bank’s security video was located.
On March 20, 1999, Anderson returned to the United Southern Bank, bearing a gift of doughnuts and orange juice as token of his appreciation for the bank’s help with his finance paper. Heather Young and Marisha Scott were the only two employees there, since the bank was scheduled to close at noon. When no other customers were present, Anderson told Young and Scott that he was going out to his car to retrieve his business cards. Anderson returned with two loaded guns and ordered the women into the vault. Anderson demanded the women fill a trash can liner with money. Anderson asked the women who wanted to die first and began shooting. During the course of the robbery, Sherry Howard entered the bank with her children. She saw Anderson in the vault and heard gunshots. Howard quickly exited the bank and called the police. The first officer on the scene caught Anderson ripping a VCR containing the bank’s security video from the wall. The officer ordered Anderson to “drop the stuff” and Anderson complied. Once Anderson was arrested and the bank secured, paramedics entered to administer aid to the victims. Heather Young died in transit to the hospital and Marisha Scott survived, but was paralyzed, and eventually died from her injuries in 2015.
Anderson was sentenced to death in Lake County on January 11, 2001.
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