Cheyenne man accused of robbing two banks and assaulting an officer pleads not guilty

CHEYENNE — A man charged with robbing two banks, assaulting an officer with a hammer, stealing a car and attempting to bite another officer pleaded not guilty to all charges during his arraignment hearing Thursday.

Eric Smith, 34, of Cheyenne was seen in Laramie County District Court on two separate issues. The first concerned his attempt to injure a deputy while in the Laramie County jail on July 29, and the second related to the charges he was booked for on July 25 — felony aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, theft and inference with a peace officer that resulted in injury.

Smith’s lawyer, Sierra Soule, did request a decrease in bond on Smith’s behalf, but Judge Peter Froelicher denied the request. He opted to maintain the $10,000 cash bond set for interfering with a police officer and the $100,000 cash-only bond set for Smith’s original charges.

Smith’s trial was scheduled for Dec. 30.

Bank robbery

On July 25, in a span of just 70 minutes, Smith allegedly robbed two banks, stole a car, attempted to rob a woman, and assaulted an officer by throwing a claw hammer at him.

According to court documents, at 3 p.m., Smith entered Jonah Bank of Wyoming on Storey Boulevard, where he threatened the teller with a black object. Because she believed the object to be an explosive device, she complied with Smith’s demands for cash from the drawers.

Smith left the bank with $4,245. According to court documents, Smith made the teller fear for her life. After leaving Jonah Bank, Smith proceeded to Burns Insurance, where he asked to “borrow” a vehicle. When his request was denied, he went to Arbor Lane and stole a 2018 Lincoln MKC.

After the initial robbery, Jonah Bank contacted surrounding financial institutions to warn them about Smith. Smith attempted to enter one other bank before going into Western Vista Federal Credit Union on Sparks Road, according to testimony given at Smith’s initial appearance on Aug. 7.

Smith used the same methods at Western Vista as he had at the Jonah Bank, threatening tellers with the alleged bomb and demanding cash. He left with $3,488, according to the arrest affidavit.

While officers were still searching both robbery sites, a man matching Smith’s description was reported for attempting to rob a woman at a residence near the 2200 block of Meadow Drive at 3:57 p.m.

Smith then fled the residence on Meadow Drive, taking off toward Taft Avenue, which is where Cheyenne Police Officer Ben Vapenik encountered him. Vapenik was aware of Smith’s description, alleged crimes and potential possession of a bomb. Vapenik told Smith that if he didn’t comply, he would have to deploy his K-9, Maverick, according to testimony given during Smith’s initial appearance Aug. 7.

Smith ignored demands to stop, and the K-9 was deployed. According to testimony at the Aug. 7 hearing, he dodged the dog and threw a claw hammer at Vapenik.

Attempting to injure an officer while in custody

During Smith’s initial appearance in circuit court, Cheyenne Police Detective Matthew Ryan and Laramie County Sheriff’s Deputy Timothy Tisher took the stand to testify about his attempt to bite an officer.

On July 29, Smith was attempting to spit on deputies, which motivated the use of a “spit hood,” according to Tisher’s testimony. In response to the application of the spit hood, Smith had aggressively attempted to bite the left hand of another deputy while in custody.

Smith had claimed to be HIV positive, which increased the potential impact of a successful bite if that claim were to be true. Smith’s HIV status has yet to be confirmed via medical testing.