Following a one-month investigation and public appeal by the Vancouver Police Department’s Major Crime Section and the Burnaby RCMP’s Robbery Unit, the “smiling bandit” believed to be responsible for a series of nine bank robberies throughout Vancouver and Burnaby is now behind bars.
Police received a number of tips after a public appeal was made yesterday afternoon, asking for help to identify a man seen in surveillance photos. Around 8:30 p.m. last night, an arrest was made following the 10th robbery, at the TD Bank located at 4994 Kingsway Avenue in Burnaby.
“With advances in video technology, evidence collection and security measures at banks, it’s not a matter of if you will caught for robbing a bank, it’s a matter of when,” says VPD spokesperson Sergeant Randy Fincham.
“This is just another example of working cooperatively and in a coordinated manner with our policing partners to identify and arrest a suspected prolific offender,” says Superintendent Steph Drolet of the Burnaby RCMP.
