Law enforcement apprehended a man suspected of committing a robbery at a TD Bank located in Middletown, New Jersey.
The bank robbery went down a short time before closing time at 3:00 p.m. on a Saturday at the TD Bank branch that is on Harmony Road in Middletown, NJ. According to law enforcement, the suspect entered the bank building and then approached a teller who was behind the counter. The suspect allegedly reached into his pocket, pulled out a note, and then handed the note to the bank employee. The bank worker later told police that the note indicated that the suspect was carrying a firearm and that he would shoot the worker unless the worker handed over cash.
Once the suspect had an unspecified amount of money given to him by the bank teller, he allegedly ran out of the building and hopped on a bicycle that was parked nearby. The suspect then reportedly rode off on the bike and fled the area.
The Middletown Township Police Department was notified of the robbery, but the suspect was long gone by the time police officers arrived at the scene. Middletown police officers, Hazlet police officers, members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and detectives with the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office subsequently investigated the bank robbery and soon identified the suspect as the likely culprit. Investigators were able to identify the suspect by looking at video surveillance images of the robbery being committed.
A description of the suspect was circulated to law enforcement throughout New Jersey. Keansburg police officers received tips from members of the public and later located the suspect on the Henry Hudson Trail and placed him under arrest.
Christopher Gramiccioni, the Monmouth County prosecutor, issued a statement about the arrest and commended the joint efforts of several law enforcement agencies in apprehending the suspect.
The suspect is a 25-year-old resident of Hazlet, New Jersey. He faces very serious criminal charges for robbery. Since police have not yet been able to establish that the suspect was actually armed with a deadly weapon at the time of the theft incident, he does not yet face charges for armed robbery or any weapons offenses. This is an important distinction because armed robbery carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in NJ State Prison, while robbery can result in a maximum sentence of 10 years behind bars.
After being arrested and charged, the suspect was remanded to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution in Freehold Township, NJ. He was being held at the jail in lieu of $200,000 bail.
For additional information, read the following article: Hazlet man charged with robbing Middletown bank