Dorchester man admits to robbing an East Boston Santander Bank

A Dorchester man with a history of bank robbery convictions has pleaded guilty to robbing a Santander Bank branch in East Boston last year, federal prosecutors announced. 

Joseph Wilcox, 58, pleaded guilty in Boston federal court Thursday to one count of bank robbery following his arrest in October 2025, Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Leah Foley’s office said in a statement. 

According to court documents, Wilcox entered the Santander Bank at 2 Meridian St. shortly before noon on Sept. 6, 2025, and handed a teller a note demanding money. 

The note read, “give me all 20’s.” Wilcox also told the teller, “Don’t f— with me,” court records show. The teller reported seeing no weapon. 

The teller handed over $4,150 in cash, authorities said. 

Investigators later tracked Wilcox through surveillance footage from the bank, nearby businesses, and MBTA cameras, according to court documents. 

Less than two hours after the robbery, Wilcox was captured on surveillance video at another Santander Bank branch at 101 Federal St., where he deposited nine $100 bills into an ATM. The deposit matched the teller’s account that the stolen cash consisted only of $50 and $100 bills, court records state.  

Prosecutors noted Wilcox has multiple prior robbery convictions. 

In 2015, he was sentenced to eight years in federal prison for robbing three banks — Blue Hills Bank and TD Bank in Brookline, and Eastern Bank in Cambridge — during a spree in January 2014 that netted more than $8,300, according to court records.

Wilcox also served a state prison sentence of three years and one day after a 2010 conviction for unarmed robbery. He was previously convicted of armed robbery in state court in 2004, Foley’s office said.

In a statement to Boston.com Tuesday night, Wilcox’s lawyer declined to offer any additional remarks regarding the matter.

Wilcox is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 17. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine, according to Foley’s office.