They were Internet darlings because of their daring and their looks.

Tall blondes, Heather Lyn Johnston, 20, and Ashley Nicole Miller, 19, were worth hundreds of clicks every time their media-given moniker Barbie Bandits made a headline or meta tag.

Jessica McGowan / AJC

Ashley Nicole Miller gets a hug from her mother Joy Miller after she is sentenced in Cobb Superior Court.

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On YouTube alone, the bank surveillance video — which showed the women wearing designer sunglasses and stylish jeans as they giggled their way through the theft of nearly $11,000 from a bank in Acworth —counted for nearly 38,000 views in a little more than one year.

The former Buford Highway strippers were the among the constellation of bright lights in the Internet world, spawning blog sites and comic re-edits of their escapade.

The information became tragically comic as news emerged that the pair, who grew up in Gwinnett County, had to call their conspirators for directions to the west Cobb bank, then used their 25 percent share of the loot to get their hair done and shop for designer clothes.

Johnston also made the morning talk show rounds and showed up on the tabloid news programs.

On Monday, both were scared young women dressed conservatively and sitting in a cold Cobb County courtroom waiting to learn whether the theft that brought them international media coverage would send them to jail.

They didn't sit together and didn't appear to acknowledge each other. Miller, a Collins Hill High School graduate, sat with her mother and a girlfriend at the front of the courtroom. Johnston, with her family, friends and minister, sat three rows behind, occupying an entire row. The Grayson High School grad chatted nervously with her lawyer and, sometimes, held hands with her boyfriend.

Separately, Johnston and Miller had pleaded guilty to theft by taking in the Feb. 27, 2007, heist at a Bank of America branch in which they had the help of a bank teller. Prosecutors had recommended both young women be sentenced to 10 years, three in jail and seven years' probation.

"I'm ready for three years; I'm not ready for 10 years," Johnston whispered to her lawyer before Superior Court Judge Mary E. Staley took the bench.

Bank teller Benny Allen III, who told the girls what to write in the demand note and handed them the money, was the first to stand before Staley. The 23-year-old was on five years' probation for a drug bust in Bartow County.

He had pleaded guilty to the bank theft, but prosecutor Bonnie Derrer said he had not upheld his agreement to testify truthfully against Michael Chastang, who was convicted of hatching the scheme and is to be sentenced today.

Staley gave Allen five years in jail and five on probation.

Miller, wearing a white blouse and black skirt and with a fresh French manicure, glanced nervously at her mother. She was next.

Her lawyer asked Staley for 12 months' probation and first-offender status, so she could have a chance to have her record expunged if she stayed out of trouble.

Miller, who once called the heist "the worst decision I ever made," told the judge: "I realize what I did was irresponsible."

Staley said she recognized Miller had come around to telling the truth, but initially had not been as truthful and willing to help as Johnston.

"I can see my way to giving you a lighter sentence than the state has recommended," said Staley, who ordered Miller to jail for two years and placed her on probation for eight.

Staley allowed Miller's mother to say goodbye, then the young woman was led off by sheriff's deputies.

Johnston's lawyer, Clay R. Thompson, was the only one to present testimony before the sentencing.

As he did at Johnston's guilty plea in August, he turned first to Danny Rager, who as pastor of Woodland Hills Assembly of God Church in Lawrenceville, has known Johnston since she was 14.

"I'm pleased with the changes in Heather's life. She's back to the girl I first met," he said. Then, Johnston, wearing a black suit, spoke:

"I know I hurt my family. I hurt my church family, and I hurt a lot of people that I love."

Under house-arrest at her Grayson home since her March 31 release from jail on bond, Johnston was the first to provide police with details. She has testified three times for the prosecution.

"I don't see much difference between the four of y'all, in terms of criminality," Staley said. But "I think it was a profound statement that you came in here in August, and you took responsibility."

Staley ordered Johnston to serve 10 years' probation, perform community service, repay the bank and pay a $2,000 fine.