A woman who reportedly served as the getaway driver during bank robberies in Parsippany and Springfield recently tried to withdraw her guilty plea.

The 31-year-old suspect is accused of helping her friend, a 44-year-old man from Newark NJ, commit bank robberies at the Investors Savings Bank in Springfield and a Santander Bank in Parsippany in December 2013.

According to law enforcement, the suspect received $450 for her role in the bank heists.

In May 2015, the suspect entered a guilty plea on the bank robbery charges after reaching a plea agreement with the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office. Under the terms of the plea deal, the suspect was expected to be sentenced to a term of incarceration of six years in New Jersey State Prison.

The suspect recently made an appearance in Morris County Superior Court, located in Morristown, and tried to withdraw her guilty plea. However, the superior court judge refused to allow her to take back the guilty plea.

The suspect was hoping to avoid a prison sentence and instead receive admission into the more lenient Morris County Drug Court program.

At the recent court hearing, Morris County prosecutors said that the suspect should be deemed ineligible for drug court because of the theft-related nature of her crimes. The suspect’s defense attorney countered that the suspect committed the bank thefts in order to feed her drug addiction.

Now, after the judge rejected the attempt to withdraw the guilty plea, the suspect will have to return to Morris County Superior Court on February 26 for formal sentencing.

For additional information about this case, view the DailyRecord.com article, “Judge: Parsippany Bank Robber Can’t Withdraw Plea.”