THE SAME MAN?: Bedford County investigators are looking into the possibility that the suspect who robbed the SunTrust in Forest on Tuesday (right) is the same person who robbed banks in Galax (left) and Roanoke in January.
Bedford County Sheriff’s Office investigators are looking into the possibility that the suspect who robbed the SunTrust in Forest on Tuesday could be tied to other similar bank robberies in Galax and Roanoke last month.
The branch, located at the corner of Graves Mill Road and U.S. 221, was robbed around 2:30 p.m., said Maj. Ricky Gardner.
The bank’s video showed a white man with long hair or a dark-colored wig, a light-colored hat with a W logo, a black button-down shirt and a red oversized jacket, Gardner said. After comparing the video to a Roanoke police photo from a Jan. 14 robbery of a First Citizens Bank there, Gardner said the suspects appeared to be very similar.
Galax Police Chief Rick Clark said in an earlier interview that he’s confident the man shown in bank video from the Roanoke branch robbed a First Citizens branch in Galax on Jan. 2.
“We believe or have believed that maybe our bank wasn’t the first bank that he had robbed and that he would continue to rob banks until he’s caught,” Clark said after the Roanoke robbery.
The Forest suspect handed the teller a note advising this was a bank robbery, then left the bank in a green Ford Mustang believed to be a 2006 or newer model, Gardner said. Witnesses told investigators the man fled down Graves Mill Road toward the Lynchburg Expressway.
WSLS contributed to this report.
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