next          previous

U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation

In Reply, Please Refer to Release No.

219 South Dearborn Street Chicago, Illinois 60604

November 13, 2003 Suspected Bank Robbers Sought Thomas J. Kneir, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is asking for the public's help in identifying the individuals depicted in the attached photographs, who are believed responsible for the recent robbery of two downtown Chicago banks. The first of these two apparently unrelated robberies occurred on October 27, 2003, when an undetermined amount of money was taken from the Burling Bank, located at 141 West Jackson. The robber is described as a black/male, 20-25 years of age, 6'- 6' 2" tall, medium build, who was wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt and red/black Nike Air basketball shoes. According to witnesses, the robber entered the bank and approached a teller, handing her a note announcing a robbery and demanding money. Although the note indicated that he was armed, no weapon was displayed and no injuries were reported. The second robbery took place on October 31, 2003 when an undetermined amount of money was taken from the LaSalle Bank branch, located at 210 South State. According to witnesses, a lone robber entered the bank and approached a teller. He handed her a note announcing a robbery and demanding money. The note implied that he was armed, though no weapon was displayed and no injuries were reported. This robber was described as a white/male, 40-45 years of age, 5'10"- 6' tall, medium build, blonde hair. He was wearing a royal blue jacket and khaki pants. In making this appeal to the public for assistance, Mr. Kneir noted that 2002 was a near record year for bank robberies in the Chicago area, with 191 investigated by the FBI in the 5 county metropolitan area. This figure was just 4 short of the record established in 1995. Thus far in 2003, the Chicago FBI has responded to 141 bank robberies. "The resources we have available to investigate traditional crimes such as bank robberies, have been reduced in recent years. As such, we need the public's help now more than ever," said Mr. Kneir. These robberies are being investigated by the FBI's Violent Crimes Task Force (VCTF), which is comprised of FBI Special Agents, Detectives from the Chicago Police Department and Officers from the Cook County Sheriff's Police. Anyone recognizing either of these individuals or having any information about these robberies is asked to call the FBI at (312) 431-1333. EDITOR's NOTE: Additional copies of the attached bank surveillance photographs are available from the Chicago FBI Press Office, either by e-mail of courier, at (312) 786-2645.

Back to 2003 Press Releases