Bank robbers caught on tape Friday Decemebr 19 at Chase Bank (left), 1125 17th St. in Denver & Key Bank (right), 7940 S. Broadway in Littleton. |
DENVER, Colo. - Four Denver-area banks were robbed Friday, bringing the running tally to 14 robberies this week alone.
Two Denver banks, one on 17th Street and another on East Alameda Ave. were held up, along with banks in Lone Tree and Littleton. The FBI says none appear to be connected.
In each case, the suspects got away with undisclosed sums of money, highlighting an alarming trend that may be connected to the holiday season and the sluggish economy.
"We have not seen an increase like we've had this week before, that I can recall," said Jennifer Waller of the Colorado Bankers Association. "One thing we think maybe the robbers fail to recognize is they will get caught. Over 60-percent of robbers are caught within 18-months of them committing the crime." Waller said.
The FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force says its apprehension rate is around 80-percent.
"I think (the bank robbers are) running out of options, and you talk about a long enough period of time that either they've been on unemployment, or they've had to roll of unemployment...a lot of these people probably don't have a lot of other options to be able to eat," said Denver resident Eric Evans.
"People are breaking into cars. People are going into people's homes. They're desperate. Times are bad," said Monica Schultz.
A standard $2,000 reward is offered for information leading to the capture of individual bank robbers, while a $20,000 reward is offered for the "Hopping Hooded Bandits." That group, made up of four men, is believed to be responsible for at least three bank robberies in December.
Colorado ranks 5th in the nation in per-capita bank robberies. Last year, 135 Colorado banks were robbed.
Anyone with information on the robberies is asked to call the FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force at 303-629-7171.
Two Denver banks, one on 17th Street and another on East Alameda Ave. were held up, along with banks in Lone Tree and Littleton. The FBI says none appear to be connected.
In each case, the suspects got away with undisclosed sums of money, highlighting an alarming trend that may be connected to the holiday season and the sluggish economy.
"We have not seen an increase like we've had this week before, that I can recall," said Jennifer Waller of the Colorado Bankers Association. "One thing we think maybe the robbers fail to recognize is they will get caught. Over 60-percent of robbers are caught within 18-months of them committing the crime." Waller said.
The FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force says its apprehension rate is around 80-percent.
"I think (the bank robbers are) running out of options, and you talk about a long enough period of time that either they've been on unemployment, or they've had to roll of unemployment...a lot of these people probably don't have a lot of other options to be able to eat," said Denver resident Eric Evans.
"People are breaking into cars. People are going into people's homes. They're desperate. Times are bad," said Monica Schultz.
A standard $2,000 reward is offered for information leading to the capture of individual bank robbers, while a $20,000 reward is offered for the "Hopping Hooded Bandits." That group, made up of four men, is believed to be responsible for at least three bank robberies in December.
Colorado ranks 5th in the nation in per-capita bank robberies. Last year, 135 Colorado banks were robbed.
Anyone with information on the robberies is asked to call the FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force at 303-629-7171.
