FBI: Bank robbers might have police experience

It might not be luck that three robbers possessed the skills to recently pull off what might be the largest bank heist in Arizona history, an FBI official said Monday.

Bank robbers kidnap employee, make huge haul

Because surveillance and surprise were essential to the bandits’ strategy, FBI Special Agent in Charge John E. Lewis speculated the men may have backgrounds in law enforcement or the military.

“(It’s) my assessment of how they conducted themselves in the homes and in the bank, as well,” Lewis said.

The suspects in Friday morning’s robbery of a Wells Fargo Bank in Tempe had kidnapped an employee from their Chandler home the night before. The robbers used that person to gain access to the building at 8670 S. McClintock Drive before making off with more than $400,000.

They first had tried that plan on Wednesday night, entering the Chandler residence of an employee of the Desert Schools Federal Credit Union. But the men realized after an interrogation at gunpoint the employee could not get them into a Chandler branch of the credit union.

Other clues, Lewis said, included the use of shackles rather than handcuffs to restrain the employees and their families, and the wearing of black clothing and hoods usually employed by tactical police teams.

Lewis said the robbers used a ruse to enter the homes but refused to divulge details.

However, the FBI has said a suspect was wearing the clothing of a construction worker, with a yellow hard hat and reflective vest.

The FBI has released a bank security camera’s grainy photograph of the suspected getaway car, a light- or silver-colored 2001-08 Plymouth or Chrysler minivan. But Lewis said they are still studying surveillance photographs taken inside the bank.

Also Monday, Wells Fargo announced it is matching the incentive already offered by the FBI, doubling the reward to $100,000.

Anyone with information about the crime or suspects is urged to call the Phoenix FBI field office at (602) 279-5511.

No. 1: Described by the FBI as the leader, he was a white male, 25 to 35 years old, standing between 5 feet 9 and 6 feet with a slender but athletic build. He had brown hair, brown eyebrows and dark forearm hair. On his left hand was a plain wedding band of either dull gold or silver. He carried a semiautomatic pistol, either a 9mm or .40-caliber, notable for its chrome-plated slide atop a black base.

No. 2: Also stood between 5 feet 9 and 6 feet with short brown hair, but he was heavier, weighing between 190 and 210 pounds. He coughed and hacked, leading authorities to believe he may be a smoker.

No. 3: An athletic white male dressed as a construction worker, with a mustard-yellow hard hat and reflective vest.

Vehicle: A light- or silver-colored 2001-08 Plymouth or Chrysler minivan with the rear seats removed.