While arrests have been made in three of the four bank robberies that have taken place in West Chester in 2011, the local police department and the FBI are continuing to investigate the PNC Bank robbery that took place last Tuesday.
The unknown suspect entered PNC Bank, 8306 Cincinnati-Dayton Road, at approximately 12:30 p.m. and passed a note to the teller demanding cash. After the cash was handed over, the suspect then fled on foot.
No weapons were used and no one was injured during the robbery, according to West Chester Police Sgt. Matt Tombragel.
Bank surveillance cameras captured an image of the suspect (photo above), who is being described as a white male, 5-foot-11 to 6-foot-2, 170 pounds, wearing a dark knit hat, dark trench coat, wire rimmed glasses and possibly fake facial hair.
Bank robberies in West Chester in 2011
West Chester Police officer Jeff Newman said that four bank robberies in a year was not an “unusual” amount, but it is an increase from 2010 when there were none. According to Newman, West Chester Township has experienced four or more bank robberies in a year several times in the past ten years.
Banks that have robbed in West Chester in 2011 include that PNC Bank, the Chase Bank located at 7722 Cox Road, the U.S. Bank located at 9135 Cox Road and a different PNC Bank, 7301 PNC Bank Road.
The latest arrests occurred from the Chase Bank robbery, which took place Sept. 3. During that robbery the suspect showed the teller a note stating he had a bomb and then demanded cash.
After collecting an undisclosed amount of cash, the suspect fled the scene on foot. Witnesses stated that the suspect ran through the parking lot of an adjoining business where he entered a dark colored vehicle with tinted windows. The vehicle was last seen heading towards I-75.
The suspect, who was wearing a Cincinnati Reds cap during the robbery, was later identified to be 15-year-old Keith Bass from Cleveland. Police were able to make the arrest due a tip from Crime Stoppers. Bass has been charged as an adult.
Bass’ 29-year-old brother Terrence Williams of Bedford, Ohio, has been charged as an accomplice. Williams is accused of driving the vehicle.
Meanwhile, the suspected robber of the U.S. Bank was arrested in western Montana in August, three months after the West Chester bank was robbed. David Owen Cooper of Dayton is currently awaiting extradition.
Then there was the bank robbery at the PNC Bank that led to chase down I-75 and a standoff on the highway.
Jackie Jackson Jr., 31, of South Cumminsville, who plead guilty to charges of robbery, attempted receiving stolen property and failure to comply with a police signal will spend the next four years in prison.
After robbing the bank in the morning March 29, Jackson led police on a short pursuit through West Chester and a chase down I-75 at speeds in excess of 85 mph before he crashed a stolen van he was driving on a highway exit in Lockland.
In radio broadcasts that West Chester police released March 30, police were heard saying, the “suspect is advised he wants to have a shootout,” “he waved the gun out the window” and “is pointing the gun through the windshield at people.”
“He made it very clear that he wanted to cause gunfire on our part,” West Chester Police Chief Erik Neihaus said during a press conference March 29.
During the standoff, three West Chester officers discharged their firearms.
The suspect’s weapon, which was believed to be a handgun, turned out to be an Airsoft Pistol or toy gun.
