U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigation
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U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation |
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| In Reply, Please Refer to Release No. |
219 South Dearborn Street Chicago, Illinois 60604 |
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April 15, 2004 LaSalle Man Charged with Peru Bank Robbery Thomas J. Kneir, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced today the arrest of CHAWN R. VASQUEZ, age 21, who is a resident of LaSalle, Illinois. VASQUEZ was arrested yesterday afternoon, without incident, by Officers from the Illinois State Police (ISP) and Shorewood Police Department in Shorewood, Illinois, following the robbery earlier that day, of the Amcor Bank branch, located at 1810 4th Street in Peru. VASQUEZ was charged in a criminal complaint filed late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Chicago with one count of Bank Robbery, which is a felony offense. According to the complaint, VASQUEZ entered the bank just after 9:00 AM, approached a teller and handed her a note, announcing a robbery and demanding money. The note implied that VASQUEZ was armed and threatened the teller with harm, if his demands were not met. After receiving approximately $1800.00 in cash, VASQUEZ fled the bank, entering a vehicle that was parked outside. Witnesses were able to provide a description of the vehicle, including the license plate number, to Peru Police Officers who responded to the robbery. This description was broadcast over the ISP radio network, resulting in the vehicle being spotted a short time later, by an ISP Officer, who was on routine patrol. No injuries were reported during the robbery and no weapon was displayed by VASQUEZ. Additional investigation was conducted by the ISP, District 5; Peru Police Department; and FBI, which developed evidence linking VASQUEZ to the robbery. VASQUEZ was subsequently turned over to the FBI and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Geraldine Soat Brown, who ordered VASQUEZ held without bond, pending his next scheduled court appearance. VASQUEZ is being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in Chicago. If convicted of the charge against him, VASQUEZ faces a possible sentence of up to 20 years incarceration. In making this announcement, Mr. Kneir wants to commend the Peru Police Department and Illinois State Police, for their prompt response to this robbery and the multi-agency cooperation they exhibited, which led to the swift solution of this crime. The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt and that all defendants in a criminal case are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. EDITOR's NOTE: A copy of the complaint filed against VASQUEZ will be available from the Chicago FBI Press Office at (312) 786-2645. |
