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The
suspect was taken to the
cells of the Public
Ministry where he is
waiting for a judge to
order the pre-trial
measures against
him. /
Judicial Investigation
Organization courtesy
photo
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Police arrest bank
customer suspected of
stealing money forgotten by
robbers at Aserrí Bank
By the
A.M. Costa Rica staff
Agents of the Judicial
Investigation Organization are
investigating Monday’s robbery
at the town of Aserrí*
branch of Banco de Costa Rica in
the mountain zone of San José.
According to the agents' report,
a man surnamed Vega-Cortes, 31
years old, was arrested on
suspicion of stealing money from
the bank after two other robbers
had left the branch.
The primary robbery occurred
when two robbers arrived at the
bank on a motorcycle, pulling
over about 25 meters away from
the bank's main entrance. When a
customer entered the bank, the
robbers took the opportunity to
gain entry to the bank where
they threatened bank employees
and customers with guns,
demanding that they lie on the
floor. The robbers then ordered
the employees to give them all
the cash in their registers. A
total of about $10,000 was taken
in the robbery. The bank
security officer was beaten and
his gun was stolen. The robbers
escaped with the gun and cash.
Employees monitoring the
security cameras noticed that
one packet of cash had been left
behind as the robbers left the
bank. A bank customer "took the
money, went to the bathroom and
hid it in his pants bags," said
the agents in their report.
Employees who saw the situation
intercepted the man when he left
the bathroom and seized the
money.
When judicial agents arrived,
the bank employees made the
official complaint and turned
over the new robbery suspect.
According to the report of the
judicial agents, the suspect
already has a police record for
theft and use of an illegal
weapon.
The suspect was taken to the
cells of the Public Ministry
where he is waiting for a judge
to order the pre-trial measures
against him.
With respect to the other two
robbers, the agents reported
that they continue in the
investigation to find them.
The Red Cross monitoring
department sent a unit to attend
to a bank customer who was
apparently in a serious nervous
crisis.
Another recent bank robbery took
place June 12 in the town of Nuevo Arenal*
in Guanacaste.
As was reported in A.M. Costa
Rica, that day at 3:30 p.m.,
three men armed with guns
entered the bank while the
fourth remained in the black
getaway car. Inside the bank,
the men wore balaclavas masks
and threatened customers with
firearms.
According to witness testimony,
the bank has a double-door entry
system but it was not in use at
the time of the robbery.
Inside the bank, the robbers
took money from the cashiers.
One robber was reported to have
climbed over the class barrier
shielding the cashiers to
complete the robbery. The safe
was not touched. One of the
robbers dropped his gun in the
bank and it was there when
police arrived and are now part
of the evidence in the case.
When the robbers left the bank,
they were not wearing masks.
One of the bank tellers had the
presence of mind to include a
dye pack with the money he gave
the robbers. The dye pack was
seen to explode before the
robbers reached the getaway car.
The first car was found
abandoned in Las Palmas on a
ballast road near Nuevo Arenal.
It had a police report of being
stolen in San José June 2.
A brief statement from the bank
said, "the bank's security
authorities activated the
respective protocol. Regarding
the money stolen, a review is
being made to determine how much
was stolen."
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Should banks be
required to use a double-door
system to help prevent
robberies? We would like to know
your thoughts on this
story. Send your comments
to: news@amcostarica.com
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