Three area police chiefs are asking the public for help in identifying a man they believe robbed four banks in three area communities in a little more than two years.
Waterville, Skowhegan and Pittsfield police on Friday released surveillance photos of the man they think robbed TD Bank at 182 Main St., Waterville on Feb. 12; the Bangor Savings Bank at 108 Somerset Avenue, Pittsfield, on Feb. 7, 2014; Key Bank at 305 Kennedy Memorial Drive in Waterville on Feb. 21, 2013; and Franklin Savings Bank at 194 Madison Avenue in Skowhegan on Dec. 13, 2012.
The robberies share similarities: all occurred in the winter, and all in mid to late afternoon. The Skowhegan robbery occurred at 4:40 p.m.; the Pittsfield robbery, 2:45 p.m.; the Key Bank Waterville robbery at 4:42 p.m.; and the TD Bank Waterville robbery at 5:47 p.m.
Waterville Deputy police Chief Charles Rumsey said Friday that the FBI also is working on the cases and the robber likely will face federal charges.
The robber of all four banks is described as being 55-65 years old, 5-feet-6-inches to 5-feet-10-inches tall and heavy set.
Police believe the same man robbed all four banks because of striking similarities in all three robberies, according to a press release from Rumsey on Friday.
In each robbery, the man showed a teller a note that threatened violence to the teller and demanded cash, no weapon was shown, the robber did not speak and the robber walked some distance to and from the scene.
Investigators also think a vehicle was parked in the general area of the banks. But the cases are unusual in that the suspect seemed to display a great deal of calm and restraint in casually walking to and from the banks, according to the release.
Also, the robber was dressed in heavy outer clothing such as a parka, gloves and different types of hats and facial coverings in all four instances.
Waterville police Detective David Caron is leading the investigation, which police from the three communities have been working on for two years, according to Rumsey.
Police asked that anyone with information on the identification of the robber should contact Caron at 680-4700. Tips also may be submitted through the Waterville Police Department’s website: www.watervillepolice.org.
Waterville Detective Sgt. William Bonney said the danger police face when broadcasting a physical description is that witnesses may discount information they have about the robbery.
“Folks who may think they have important information will tend to keep it to themselves if, for instance, the person they suspect might be of a different height, or a different age,” Bonney said in the release. “What we really want is for anyone who thinks they may have any helpful information to contact us so we can investigate their lead.”
Detectives continue to investigate the robberies and process evidence but say the most valuable leads likely will be generated by members of the public looking at surveillance photos and thinking about whether they know or have seen the suspect.
“A large amount of our investigative resources are being committed to this investigation, but we are asking the public’s help,” Waterville police Chief Joseph Massey said the release.
Massey said this bank robbery case is different from others.
“The frequency of the crimes and some other particularities lead us to believe that this isn’t a robber committing crimes to fuel a drug habit,” Massey said. “Frankly, once we know who is committing these robberies, we are very curious to learn why he is doing this. We’ve considered many possibilities: stealing money to go on vacation, to pay taxes or some other debt or even to care for a sick family member. We aren’t ruling anything out.”
Police say the repeat or serial nature of the crimes attracted the concern of the FBI and a special agent was assigned to work with and assist police investigators.
Pittsfield police Chief Steven Emery said police typically refuse to release certain details about crimes such as bank robberies, including the amount of money stolen or contents of notes displayed during the robberies.
“Such case details are invaluable to our investigators when we question suspects or witnesses who may have information,” Emery said. “It’s a way for us to tell if the people we are interviewing really have any idea what they are talking about.”
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