Robbery

Ripoff Crew Dressed Like SWAT Team Steals $60K From Kidnapped Would-Be Pot Sellers; One Victim Leaps from Trunk on Way to Desert

A group of men dressed up like a SWAT team and armed with assault rifles robbed and kidnapped three people connected to a pot-selling scheme last month in Litchfield Park. One of the terrified victims jumped from the trunk of a Jaguar going 60 mph while being taken to a desert location. The victim ... More >>

Medical Marijuana Grower Shot and Stabbed During Apparent Robbery

A medical marijuana grower was shot and stabbed inside his Surprise home yesterday in an apparent robbery.Martin Ridgway is in critical condition after being shot once in the abdomen and stabbed multiple times by one of the three men who came to Ridgway's home posing as medical marijuana patients, p ... More >>

Friends Rob Friends, Then Post Facebook Update of Whereabouts

A woman accused of burglary and kidnapping was arrested Sunday after one of her victims saw on a Facebook update that the suspect would be at a Phoenix restaurant. Brandi Lynn Rogers, 37, was arrested Sunday and charged with armed robbery, burglary and kidnapping. One of her accomplices led police ... More >>

Take a Chilling Look Inside the Baseline Killer Case

Robbery Suspect Shot by Cops After Stealing Car and Threatening 4-Year-Old With Gun

​A robbery suspects crime spree -- which includes threatening a 4-year-old with a gun -- came to an end last night after he crashed the stolen car he was driving into a wall and was shot by a Phoenix police officer.According to the Phoenix Police Department, just before 10 p.m. yesterday, the susp ... More >>

Getting your iPhone stolen? Yeah, There's an App for That -- Just Hang Out in Tempe

www.designtaxi.com​Over the past several weeks, the Tempe Police Department says at least two groups of thieves have stolen iPhones and other electronic devices from at least eight Arizona State University students on or near the university's Tempe campus.The most recent heist happened Monday nigh ... More >>

Suspect in Three Armed Robberies, Ryan Foote, Kills Man Who Dated Ex-Girlfriend, Police Say

Image: Maricopa County Sheriff's OfficeRyan Foote broke into an apartment early Monday and shot to death his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend, cops say.​ A 22-year-old suspect in three armed robberies burst through the glass door of a Phoenix apartment at about 3 a.m. on Monda ... More >>

Anthony Rios Used Samurai Sword in (Failed) Bicycle Robbery

MCSOFailed bike robber Anthony Lopez Rios​Mesa thief Anthony Lopez Rios used a samurai sword in an attempt to steal a guy's bicycle last night. More laughable than using a martial arts weapon to try to rob a bike, the robbery attempt netted precisely zero bikes -- and Rios can now add "failed bike ... More >>

"Thou Shalt Not Steal Bandit" Strikes Again?

Has the bandit struck again?​It appears a thief the Federal Bureau of Investigation's bandit-naming department has dubbed the "thou shalt not steal bandit" may have struck again -- this time in Phoenix.Phoenix police say the First Fidelity Bank branch near 32nd Street and Lincoln Drive in Phoenix ... More >>

Suspects Force Robbery Victim to Push SUV to Gas Station (With Car) as Girlfriend Taken Hostage; Three Punks Robbed Nine at Gunpoint

Image: Circle K surveillance videoCops say this is one of three men who helped rob and hold a group of nine people hostage on June 28.​ Three hoodlums whose SUV ran out of gas during a June robbery forced one of their victims at gunpoint to use his car to push the vehicle to a gas station ... More >>

Three Men Claim to be Cops -- Then Rob Phoenix Home at Gunpoint

The robbery took place on the 2200 block of East Virginia Avenue.​Yelling "Police!" and banking on the element of surprise, three men kicked down the door of a Phoenix home early this morning, robbing the family inside at gunpoint.   According to police, three Hispanic men rolled up to ... More >>

This Guy Robbed Three Banks

If you know this guy, call the cops.​The man pictured above is responsible for three bank robberies over the past month, and cops need the public's help tracking him down.

Faux-Armed Robbery of Payday Loan Store Foiled When Clerk Spills Her Guts

Lincoln Knight (left), Jeremy Parker (center), and Simone Parker (right) faked an armed robbery that would have netted about $37,000 -- if Knight had stuck to the plan.​First rule of staging an armed robbery: don't tell police it's fake. Second rule of staging an armed robbery: DON'T TELL POLICE I ... More >>

Man Robs Peoria Convenience Store With Rock the "Size of a Human Foot"

Peoria Police DepartmentWanted in connection with rock-armed robbery.​Peoria police detectives are still on the hunt for a man who reportedly robbed a gas station convenience store near 83rd Avenue and Bell Road with a rock last week.The suspect threatened to bash the clerk's head in with the rock ... More >>

"First-Aid Bandit," Samuel Cresante, Sentenced to 19 Years in Prison for String of Valley Robberies

"First-Aid Bandit" Samuel Cresante hard at work. ​The only "first-aid" 45-year-old Samuel Cresante will be receiving for the next several years will be at a prison infirmary. Cresante was sentenced in federal court this morning to 19 years in prison for a string of at least 12 bank robberies lamel ... More >>

Serial Bank Robber Sentenced to Life in Prison. Judge Says He's the "Poster Child" For Three Strikes Law

www.tone-lizard.com​At a sentencing hearing this morning, a federal judge in Phoenix told a convicted serial bank robber that he "is a poster child of why Congress enacted" the Three Strikes law. Then he sentenced him to life in prison plus seven years.

Robbery Suspect Uses Plastic Bag as Mask. Not Only Did He Almost Suffocate, it Was a Clear Plastic Bag

Phoenix PDIf you know this guy, call the cops. Then call his mother and ask why she never told him putting a plastic bag over his head is a bad idea.​The suspect in the robbery of a Phoenix convenience store apparently forgot that his body would still require oxygen while robbing the store, which ... More >>

Guy Robs Phoenix Auto Parts Store; Takes Part for Chevy Yukon, Leaves Cash

If you know either of these guys call the cops.​Looks like a local thief needs a quick refresher course in Armed Robbery 101: when committing armed robbery, you're not limited in what you can steal. You're already committing a crime that will likely land you in prison, so you might as well grab as ... More >>

Former Female Bank Teller Arrested for String of Bank Robberies

Phoenix PDDanyelle Gerrie​We hear stories about bank robberies almost every day here in the Valley, but it's not to often that the suspect in the robberies is a former bank teller. Almost as infrequently is the suspect a woman.Danyelle Gerrie, 25, is allegedly the exception to the apparent rule.Ge ... More >>

Too Many '70s Movies? Robber Cuts Phone Lines in Hyatt Place Hotel After Taking Cash

  Cutting phone lines after a robbery is so 20th-century.​Police are still looking for leads in a robbery at the Hyatt Place Hotel in downtown Scottsdale early Tuesday, in which a man wearing a wig helped himself to cash in the front-desk register. Not an unusual crime. But we f ... More >>

From the Really- Stupid-Criminal Files: Alleged Bank Robber Busted After Taking Getaway Cab to Restaurant

Robert Solfisburg​We would never encourage anyone to rob a bank. But if recent history tells us anything, it's not hard to do -- unless you're an idiot.It seems that nearly every day we get a press release from a Valley police agency telling the story of some thief who robbed a bank and got ... More >>

Phoenix Bank Robbed by Someone Who Actually Had a Gun

Peoria Police DepartmentThis guy robbed a bank. If you know him, call the cops.​Well, the sun came out today, which, here in the Valley, often means a local law enforcement agency needs the public's help in tracking down some bozo who robbed a bank.The latest bank heist is brought to you by the Ph ... More >>

Convicted Scottsdale Bank Robber Possibly Lookin' at 80 Years in Clink

WTRF OhioMichael Yanni​It seems nearly every other day we get a press release from a Valley law enforcement agency asking for the public's help in tracking down someone who robbed a bank. It's rare that we hear any news of one of those robbers being caught or convicted.Today is one of the rare day ... More >>

"Overtimetime Bandit" Strikes Again. By "Again," We Mean he Hit the Same Bank Twice

The "Overtime Bandit"​The "Overtime Bandit" is at it again -- for the second time in three months he's robbed the same Mesa bank.The bandit, dubbed the "Overtime Bandit" because he tends to strike on weekends or at the end of the work day, robbed the Desert Schools Federal Credit Union at 2355 S. ... More >>

Escaped Inmate and Incestuous Fiancee/ Cousin May be in Arkansas. How Fitting?

John McCluskey and his fiancee/ cousin Casslyn Welch.​An escaped Arizona prison inmate and his fiancee have reportedly compared themselves to Bonny and Clyde, and they seem to be living up to the comparison. We'd argue a better comparison would be to the Hapsburgs -- because the two are cousins... ... More >>

Phoenix Bank Robbed by Guy With "Messed Up" Teeth

Phoenix PD​It isn't uncommon for police to release details about certain physical characteristics of a suspect involved in a crime. A tattoo, a scar -- things along those lines.According to the Phoenix Police Department, one of the characteristics that might help track down the guy who robbed a ba ... More >>

Guy Robs Tempe Bank With Note; $5,000 Reward Offered

Tempe Police DepartmentIf you know this guy, call the cops.​Today is a day that ends in the word "day," which tends to mean one thing here in the Valley: police need help finding someone who robbed a bank.As Valley crooks have proven recently, there's no shortage of banks in the Valley and no shor ... More >>

Sloppy Handwriting First Mistake in Failed Bank Robbery in Downtown Phoenix

Phoenix PD If you know this guy, call the cops.​If you have any plans on robbing a bank with a note, at least make your demands legible.Perhaps the suspect in a failed bank robbery in Phoenix this morning would have been better served e-mailing his demand note to the bank because the words ... More >>

Surprise Pharmacy Robbed at Gunpoint. Robber Takes Pills, Leaves Cash

​If you're going to all the trouble of committing armed robbery -- even if you're really only looking for prescription pills -- you might as well take some cash, too.Ya see, pill-poppers, once you polish off the pharmies you rob, you can often use money to buy more -- kind of a two-birds-one-stone ... More >>

People Are Getting Robbed at Gunpoint in Tempe. Like, A Lot of People

www.mickeys.co.za​The disappearance of the Town Lake is only one of the problems Tempe's facing these days. The other: armed robberies -- lots of them -- happening in roughly the same area, each with a similar M.O.Since April 11, there have been nine people robbed at gunpoint in the northwest sect ... More >>

Another Day, Another Bank Robbery (Or Failed Robbery as is the Case in Latest Attempted Heist)

Phoenix Police Department If you know this guy, call the cops.​Well, the sun came up yesterday, which seems to mean one thing lately here in Sand Land: somebody robbed a bank -- or at least tried to. For those in the news biz, you've probably noticed lately that about once-a-day ... More >>

Bank Robber on Loose After Phoenix Heist -- Suspect's a Chick

Phoenix PD​There's a bank robber on the loose, and unlike the vast majority of bank robbery suspects, this one's a chick.Phoenix police Detective Mike Fischer tells New Times that the robbery occurred yesterday at the Chase Bank at 6000 North 19th Avenue in Phoenix around 2:30 p.m.Fischer sa ... More >>

Bank Robber on the Loose After Mesa Robbery

Phoenix Police Department Do you know this guy? If you do, he robbed a bank and you should probably call police.​Police are asking the public's help in tracking down the man who robbed a bank in Mesa on Friday. In a press release from the Phoenix Police Department (not sure why it didn't c ... More >>

"Hothead Bandit" Indicted on 25 Counts Following Alleged Bank-Robbery Spree

​A federal grand jury in Phoenix returned a 25-count indictment yesterday against a man dubbed "The Hothead Bandit" by the FBI's over-worked bandit-naming department.Timothy John Kestle, 55, of Litchfield Park, has been charged with 13 counts of armed bank robbery and 12 counts of possessing or us ... More >>

"Hot Head Bandit," Serial Bank Robber, Busted in Peoria

www.hilariousheadlines.com​An alleged serial bank robber, responsible for at least three heists across the Valley, was busted in Peoria last week thanks to the keen eye of a police officer, the Peoria Police Department announced this morning. Peoria police spokesman Mike Tellef tells Ne ... More >>

Another Valley Bank Robber Uses Bandages as Possible Disguise During Heist

​There's a new bank robber on the loose who bares a striking resemblance to one of our favorite, horribly-named bank-robbing "bandits."You may recall the "First-Aid Bandit," later re-named the "Band-Aid Bandit," who was arrested in January after a string of robberies stretching from Gilbert to Que ... More >>

Wig Bandit Leader Sentenced to More Than a Century in Prison

​The leader of a group of Valley bank robbers, who wore wigs during the majority of their heists, was sentenced to more than 100 years in prison, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced today.Julio Cesar Feliciano, Jr., 46, was sentenced to 106 years in federal prison this morning for his role in ... More >>

Phoenix Man Busted After Robbing Three Stores in 20 Minutes, Getting His Car Stuck in the Mud, and a Brief Swim

www.doroteofiles.com​A Phoenix man was arrested this afternoon after robbing three stores in 20 minutes, getting his car stuck in the mud, and leading police on a foot chase that ended in a nearby lake.According to Phoenix police Detective James Holmes, 20-year-old John Michael Krol robbed a Kentu ... More >>

Peoria Pill Bandit Busted Just Days After Cops Increase Reward Money

Alleged Peoria Pill Bandit Steven Hochuli, seen here robbing a CVS in Peoria on November 29​They got him! The man police believe is the infamous Peoria Pill Bandit is behind bars today, just days after cops increased the reward money for information leading to his arrest from $2,0 ... More >>

"Ma Barker" and Teen Robbery Crew Arrested in Phoenix, Cops Say; Mom and Sons, 12 & 14 years old Sought Victims

Image: www.crimeandinvestigation.co.uk Police are accusing a Phoenix woman, her two young sons and their friends of a series of local robberies, comparing the woman to the infamous Midwestern criminal of the 1930s, "Ma" Barker. Actually, this crime makes Ma Barker look like Mother Theresa. "It' ... More >>

Bank Robberies on the Rise in Valley; Feds and Local Authorities Pledge to Work Cases Hard

The number of bank robberies in the Valley have doubled compared to the first few months of 2008, prompting authorities to pledge to work harder on the cases. From January to May 1 in 2008, robbers held up 44 Valley banks. In the same four months in 2009, they hit 88. There were 179 bank ... More >>

High-Tension Armed Robbery at Phoenix Credit Union Ends With All Suspects Captured

MCSO mug shotDavid Tongate The pair of robbers entered the credit union suddenly, yelling at employees, waving a gun.Police say the robbery of the Sun West Federal Credit Union yesterday was more like Point Break than the average pass-a-note-and-run kind of bank stick-up.But it was also like America ... More >>

Chandler Police Bust Man FBI Says is Responsible for Robbing Six Banks

MCSO mug shotJorge Gutierrez likes to spend a lot of time at Desert Schools Federal Union. The locations are convenient, and he likes the easy-to-work-with employees.Most of all, he likes the money.The FBI alleges Gutierrez robbed the credit union in the Ahwatukee/Chandler area five times, including ... More >>

Car Theft by the Numbers

Rx: Retrial

Convicted of a 1984 drugstore heist, a prisoner may receive a long-overdue dose of freedom

Marked Man

Felix Medina and his gang compatriots ruthlessly ruled a south central neighborhood. Now the party's over.

Letters

Sin of a Preacher Man

New evidence in unsolved Phoenix murder leads to a Tacoma man of God

SIEGE, SIEGE, SENOR

REMOTE BORDER AREA IS TERRORIZED BY ROBBIN' HOODS