Wanted: The Red Line Robber
FBI issues alert regarding bank robber hitting convenient locations
Updated 3:24 PM CST, Thu, Mar 19, 2009
While many Chicagoans are complaining about CTA travel these days, here's one guy who can really appreciate the many convenient stops the Red Line makes.
The FBI is looking for a man they call "The Red Line Robber."
Robert D. Grant, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago FBI office, has offered a $10,000 reward in asking for the public’s help in identifying a man they say has robbed at least six Chicago banks, dating to December of last year.
Grant said that he is concerned for the public's safety.
“History has shown that serial robbers continue to strike until they are caught and the more often he strikes, the greater the likelihood that someone will get hurt,” he said in a news release.
In the most recent theft on Friday, March 13, the robber entered the Chase Bank branch at 850 South Wabash, brandishing a handgun. He forced a bank employee sitting in the lobby area to accompany him to the teller’s window, where he announced a robbery and threatened both employees with harm, if his demands were not met. During the exchange, the robber specifically warned against slipping him a security dye pack, indicating that he would return and shoot both employees if one activated when he left the bank. After grabbing an undisclosed amount of cash, the robber then fled on foot, disappearing into the passing crowd.
Other robberies attributed to the “Red Line Robber” are the Chase Bank branch, located at 340 North State Street on Dec. 5 and March 10; the North Community Bank branch, located at 5342 North Broadway and the Bank of America branch, located at 7900 South Halsted, both on Jan. 23; and the MB Financial Bank branch, located at 6443 North Sheridan Road, also on March 10.
The “Red Line Robber” is described by witnesses as a black man, 30 to 35 years of age, 6-feet to 6-feet 2-inches tall, 200 pounds, medium build with a beard. He has worn sunglasses, a dark colored baseball cap and a black colored bomber jacket during all of his robberies. He has also been armed with a handgun during each theft and as such, should be considered armed and dangerous.
He has been given the moniker “Red Line Robber” because all of his suspected thefts have occurred at bank branches located near stops on the CTA’s Red Line, leading investigators to believe that he is riding a CTA train to and from the banks.
Anyone recognizing this individual or having any information about any of the robberies detailed in this release is asked to call the Chicago FBI at 312-421-6700.
First Published: Mar 19, 2009 1:40 PM CST
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