Alleged 'Granddad Bandit' caught

In this Dec. 2008 surveillance image, a man dubbed the "Granddad Bandit" holds up a SunTrust in Richmond.

 

Frank Green

TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
August 12, 2010

Richmond, Va.

A prolific bank robber dubbed the "Granddad Bandit" may have been retired by the FBI yesterday with the arrest of 52-year-old Michael Francis Mara in Baton Rouge, La.

In less than two years, the bandit allegedly held up at least 25 banks in 14 states -- three in Virginia and two in the Richmond area -- starting Dec. 19, 2008, with the robbery of $1,850 from the SunTrust branch at 919 E. Main St.

The most recent robbery attributed to the bandit occurred Tuesday in Charlotte, N.C., according to The Charlotte Observer.

The robber, caught on a number of surveillance videos, typically entered banks without a disguise, waited in line and then presented a note to a teller demanding money, authorities allege. He then would leave the bank with the money and the note.

According to an FBI affidavit, in a June 22 robbery of the Union First Market Bank at 11263 W. Broad St., the robber handed over a note that the teller recalls as saying: "This is a holdup, give me $5,000.00 no bait money, no alarms, don't say anything to anybody."

The teller turned over $1,980 to the robber, and he left.

In addition to Virginia and North Carolina, Mara is alleged to have robbed banks in Alabama, Texas, Georgia, Arkansas, Kansas, New York, Florida, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky and Missouri.

After the June 22 robbery in Richmond, the FBI coordinated an extensive fugitive publicity campaign through the use of digital billboards to solicit help from the public in identifying and locating the robber.

The FBI said its Norfolk Field Office received a tip Aug. 2 that the Granddad Bandit was Mara. The tipster gave agents photographs of Mara and a previous cellphone and work telephone number for him.

"In the photographs provided by the caller, Mara is wearing a hat, eyeglasses, and wristwatch that appear to be identical to those worn by the 'Granddad Bandit' in bank robberies throughout the nation," FBI Special Agent Michael K. Termyn said in his affidavit.

Further investigation showed he previously worked or still worked for "a vehicle transportation company" for which he traveled from state to state.

He rented a car in Baton Rouge on March 8 and returned it April 29. During the 52 days he had the car, the FBI said, 9,669 miles were logged. During the same time frame, three banks were robbed in three states "in the same geographical area."

It is not clear when he will be brought back to Richmond for a court appearance.

"A tip to the FBI made today's arrest possible," said U.S. Attorney Neil H. MacBride, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. "This is a great example of how the public and law enforcement must work together to keep our communities safe."

 

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