Little Rock, Arkansas – A Memphis man will spend more than 17 years in federal prison after being sentenced in Arkansas for a string of armed bank robberies that stretched across state lines and involved multiple law enforcement agencies.
Freddy Najil, 37, was sentenced to 211 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to bank robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The sentence was handed down by United States District Court Chief Judge Kristine G. Baker in the Eastern District of Arkansas. Federal prosecutors confirmed that there is no parole in the federal system, meaning Najil will serve the vast majority of his sentence behind bars.
Jonathan D. Ross, United States attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the outcome following the court’s decision, which closed a case that had been building through two separate federal indictments across Arkansas and Mississippi.
Baker also sentenced Najil, of Memphis, Tennesee, to serve three years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
The case against Najil did not unfold in a single courtroom filing. Instead, it developed through a coordinated federal effort involving two jurisdictions. On June 6, 2024, a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Arkansas issued a two-count indictment charging him with bank robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Months later, on March 4, 2025, a separate six-count indictment was issued in the Northern District of Mississippi. That indictment included two counts of bank robbery, two counts of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The Mississippi case was later transferred to Arkansas for consolidated plea and sentencing after Najil consented on May 9, 2025.
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He formally pleaded guilty on November 3, 2025, admitting to bank robbery and unlawful firearm possession.
Authorities say Najil’s criminal activity spanned three separate armed bank robberies committed across Mississippi and Arkansas between February and May 2024. Each incident, investigators noted, involved the use of a firearm and a rapid escape with stolen cash.
The first robbery occurred on Feb. 9, 2024, when officers with the Horn Lake Police Department responded to a robbery at Renasant Bank. Witnesses and surveillance footage confirmed that the suspect pointed a firearm at four employees while demanding money. Najil fled the scene with approximately $2,724.
Weeks later, on April 18, 2024, the Southaven Police Department investigated another armed robbery at Securtrust Bank. According to investigators, the suspect again used a firearm, pointing it at a teller and instructing her “not to do anything stupid” before escaping with $12,251.
The third and largest robbery took place on May 3, 2024, in West Memphis. Officers responded to an armed robbery at Evolve Bank, where the suspect allegedly pointed a firearm at employees and fled with $22,251 in cash. What investigators later discovered added an unusual twist to the case: GPS monitoring devices had been hidden inside the stolen money, allowing law enforcement to track the suspect’s movements in real time.
That tracking led to a high-speed pursuit involving West Memphis police officers and Arkansas State Police troopers. Authorities followed a black Infiniti GS3 as it crossed state lines into Memphis, where the vehicle eventually crashed.
What happened next unfolded quickly. Najil allegedly ran from the wreckage, with officers reporting that he fled “with money flying from his arms.” He was later apprehended near scattered cash and a .40 caliber pistol. Police recovered approximately $22,134 in U.S. currency at the scene.
During post-arrest questioning after being advised of his rights, Najil admitted to investigators that he committed the robberies in Horn Lake, Southaven, and West Memphis. He also acknowledged that he stole the vehicle used in the May 3 robbery.
Federal prosecutors emphasized that Najil’s criminal history played a significant role in the severity of his sentence. His prior record includes multiple violent and drug-related convictions, classifying him as an armed career criminal under federal law.
Court records show a long pattern of offenses: eight convictions for robbery with a dangerous weapon, six convictions for second-degree kidnapping, and additional convictions related to drug distribution, including possession of cocaine with intent to sell or deliver, possession of marijuana with intent to sell or deliver, and possession of cocaine.
Given this extensive history, prosecutors argued that Najil posed a continuing danger to the public, particularly in cases involving firearms and violent theft. The court ultimately agreed, resulting in the lengthy federal sentence.
The investigation that led to Najil’s conviction was a coordinated effort between multiple agencies. The FBI’s Little Rock, Arkansas, and Jackson, Mississippi, field offices led the federal investigation, working alongside local law enforcement agencies including the Horn Lake Police Department, Southaven Police Department, Memphis Police Department, Arkansas State Police, and West Memphis Police Department.
Officials said the case highlights the importance of cooperation between federal, state, and local agencies when dealing with cross-state criminal activity. The rapid coordination between departments, particularly during the final robbery and pursuit, was credited with helping bring the case to a close without further public harm.
Prosecutors in the case included Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Eldridge for the Eastern District of Arkansas and Assistant United States Attorney Clyde McGee, senior litigation counsel for the Northern District of Mississippi.
With sentencing now complete, Najil will serve his federal prison term followed by supervised release, marking the conclusion of a case that stretched across multiple jurisdictions and involved a detailed, multi-agency investigation into a series of violent bank robberies.
