and told a teller to "give me all the money and don't say anything further," police said. He left the bank with $7,000 and went to get in one cab, then got into a Checker Cab and fled the area. Cab driver Dan Schaffer said the suspect approached to his vehicle while Schaffer was doing paperwork and asked if the cab was available.
He told the man he had to go into the first cab in line, and the man jumped into that taxi cab and they took off. Schaffer said police were able to call the cab driver on his cellular telephone and figure out where they were to make the arrest. Police said that with a description of the cab and suspect they were led to 13th and Lincoln Avenue in North Chicago.
Waukegan and North Chicago officers found the suspect on foot in the alley of the 1300 block of Lincoln Avenue and arrested him without incident. Waukegan police said he would be turned over to the FBI. In April 2006, someone robbed the same branch of Associated Bank and fled from the scene in a cab.
No one was ever arrested for that robbery. In that case, the robber had the cab driver drop him off on Martin Luther King Drive. He paid with a $20 bill and told the cab driver to keep the change.
In that robbery, the robber told bank employees that a bag he was carrying contained a bomb. A fire department X-ray machine revealed that it contained a fist-sized rock. On Thursday, police took a man into custody who had a gun and had allegedly given a note to a teller at Guaranty Bank, 1700 N.
Lewis Ave., that announced a robbery "and he was armed," police said. The male suspect ended up leaving the bank without any money because he got nervous with the clerk's delay.
When he left the building, police were already in position after being alerted by bank employees. The suspect has been turned over to the FBI. Special Agent Ross Rice said that he expected the suspect to be charged on Monday and his name released.
Asked if two bank robberies occurring within two days was unusual, Rice said, "Unfortunately, no. We had about 10 bank robberies in the (Chicago five-county area) this week. So it's not that unusual," he said.
Waukegan Police Chief William Biang said, "The way this incident was handled shows great cooperation between bank personnel, police telecommunicators and police officers that resulted in a peaceful resolution and averted a potential hostage situation," he said. The other bank robberies so far this year include First Bank in Zion and TCF Bank inside the Jewel-Osco in Zion, which also occurred on two consecutive days, and First Bank in Gurnee, for a total of five. and told a teller to "give me all the money and don't say anything further," police said.
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