She was valedictorian of her high school class. Decades later, she orchestrated a bank robbery that killed a man on live television.
Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong was the mastermind behind the 2003 "pizza bomber" plot in Erie, Pennsylvania, in which delivery driver Brian Wells died after a live bomb locked around his neck detonated following a bank robbery.
An Early Life of Promise
Diehl-Armstrong grew up in a well-off Erie family, graduated as valedictorian of her high school class, and earned a master's degree in education. She was also a documented musical prodigy. Beginning in her 20s, however, she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and grew increasingly volatile; in 1984, she shot and killed a boyfriend, though she was acquitted after arguing self-defense against his abuse.
The Plot
By 2003, Diehl-Armstrong was reportedly trying to raise money to hire an associate, Kenneth Barnes, to kill her father in a dispute over her future inheritance. She, Barnes, William Rothstein, and Brian Wells — a longtime employee at a local pizzeria — met to plan a bank robbery to fund it. On August 28, 2003, Wells delivered pizzas to a remote location, where the group fitted him with a bomb collar around his neck. He then drove to a PNC Bank, handed the teller a demand note, and left with roughly $8,700.
Death on Live Television
Police stopped Wells shortly after the robbery and had him sit, handcuffed, while they waited for a bomb squad, believing at first that the device might be fake. It wasn't. The bomb detonated before technicians arrived, killing him as television news cameras captured the scene. In his car, investigators later found detailed scavenger-hunt-style instructions for locating the key needed to disarm the device — written using language like "we" and "us," suggesting multiple people were involved in planning it, though it's disputed how much Wells himself understood about what he was walking into.
Years to Solve
The case went unsolved for years until a break came from an unrelated direction: William Rothstein called police in September 2003 to report a body in his freezer, which turned out to be Diehl-Armstrong's former boyfriend, James Roden. She was convicted of his murder in 2005, having killed him, prosecutors argued, because he threatened to expose the bombing plot. In 2007, following further cooperation from Barnes, both he and Diehl-Armstrong were formally indicted for the bank robbery and Wells's death, along with unindicted co-conspirators Rothstein, who died of cancer before facing charges, and Floyd Stockton, who was granted immunity for his testimony.
Trial and Sentencing
Diehl-Armstrong was convicted in November 2010 of armed bank robbery, conspiracy, and using a destructive device in a violent crime. In February 2011, she was sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years, to run consecutively with her earlier sentence for Roden's murder. She maintained her innocence throughout, telling the court "the true killers are still out there" — a claim Wells's own family has echoed, arguing he was manipulated into the plot rather than a willing participant. Barnes was separately sentenced to 45 years, later reduced to roughly 22 years after his cooperation against Diehl-Armstrong.
Death
Diehl-Armstrong died of natural causes at a federal medical facility in Fort Worth, Texas, on April 4, 2017, at age 68, having also been diagnosed with cancer.
A Documentary Followed
The case was the subject of Netflix's 2018 docuseries "Evil Genius: The True Story of America's Most Diabolical Bank Heist," which examined the plot's tangled web of conspirators and the years-long investigation that eventually unraveled it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Was Brian Wells a willing participant or a victim?
This remains disputed. Prosecutors argued he was involved in planning the robbery from the start, believing the bomb would be fake; his family has maintained he was coerced and unaware the device was real.
Is Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong still alive?
No. She died in prison in April 2017.
Was anyone else convicted in the case?
Yes. Kenneth Barnes was sentenced to 45 years, later reduced to about 22 years for his cooperation. William Rothstein died before facing charges, and Floyd Stockton received immunity for testifying.