Serial Bank Robber Wanted by the FBI

 

    The Federal Bureau of Investigation is searching for a man who has robbed several banks in Pennsylvania and northeast Ohio. Two robberies occurred in Lorain County, Ohio, once December 3rd and again on December 5th.

    The suspect is described as a white male, 6 foot 3 inches to 6 foot 4 inches tall, 180 pounds and he has worn a dark colored winter coat or a tan or beige Carhart type jacket. Suspect has also worn a dark colored ski cap with a white 'Nike' logo on the front.

    The vehicle the suspect is driving is a four door, Ford or Mercury which is believed to have Ohio license plates. The vehicle is dark in color in some shade of green.

 

Bank Robbery Suspect

Suspect Vehicle, may be a dark shade of green.

 

If you see anyone you feel may be this person or vehicle please contact the Ottawa County Sheriffs Office at 419-734-4404, your local police department or the FBI.

The following is from a news article published in the Lorain Beacon Journal on December 6th:

AMHERST — The man who robbed the FirstMerit Bank in Amherst yesterday is believed to be the same thief who robbed a bank Wednesday in Sheffield Village and six other banks in Northeast Ohio and Erie, Pa., according to FBI spokesman Scott Wilson.

The FirstMerit, 938 N. Leavitt Road, was robbed about 12:20 p.m. Wednesday's robbery at 12:30 p.m. was at the Fifth Third Bank on North Abbe Road in Sheffield Village.

Yesterday afternoon, a FirstMerit Bank spokesman said the bank was closed and he could not release information about the robbery because he was speaking to police.

Wilson said the suspect, who does not show a gun and appears to be unarmed, has robbed the banks by showing notes to bank tellers demanding money. The suspect, who does disguise himself, has made off with an undisclosed amount of money from each bank, Wilson said.

The suspect is described as a white male, 20 to 30 years old, about 6 feet 3 inches tall, thin build, weighing 200 pounds. During yesterday's robbery, he was wearing a black coat with a dark-colored ski cap.

"We believe it's the same guy involved in multiple bank robberies here in Ohio and Erie, Pa.," Wilson said. "Not only from description, but also from what we've gathered from the surveillance photos."

Police released a surveillance photo of the suspect who robbed the Fifth Third Bank, and Wilson said that photo looks like yesterday's robber.

The man in the surveillance photo released is also a suspect in robberies at an Akron bank, a Bath Township bank, a bank in the Youngstown area and two banks in Erie, Pa., Wilson said. The seven bank robberies have taken place since October.

"In bank robberies, the main goal is to keep everyone safe," Wilson said. "The banks follow their procedure. It doesn't matter if he shows the gun or not. You have to assume he might have a weapon."

Wilson said the FBI does not know why these seven banks in particular were targeted but said "some of the banks have a fairly close proximity to a highway," he said, adding Interstate 90 runs near the banks in Erie, Sheffield Village and Amherst and Interstate 77 is near the bank in Akron.

"He's a serial bank robber," Wilson said. "(We hope) we can get him arrested before he robs another bank."

Two other banks were also robbed yesterday, but Wilson said there are two other suspects for those robberies. The Key Bank, 15000 St. Clair Ave., Cleveland, and the Huntington Bank, 3328 Main St., Conneaut, were robbed yesterday of undisclosed amounts of cash by two different suspects.

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Posted December 6, 2008