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Jun 2, 2008 4:25 pm US/Central
Police Arrest 7 Scarecrow Bandit Suspects
Map Of Suspected Scarecrow Bandit Robberies (Info From FBI)
Compiled from staff reports
NORTH TEXAS (CBS 11 News) ―
Seven people suspected in the "Scarecrow Bandit" bank robberies are behind bars. Monday night the suspects - six male and one female - were in the Dallas County Jail.
The arrests followed an attempted bank robbery in Garland, two high-speed police chases and a standoff at a Costco store in Plano.
The "Scarecrow Bandits" are suspected in 20 bank robberies across North Texas since July, 2007.
Dallas Police and the FBI tell CBS 11 News they have had the Scarecrow Bandit suspects under surveillance for several days.
Officials say the suspects were heavily armed during past bank robberies.
Because of that, police have been concerned that a confrontation with the men could have turned into a shootout.
We've learned details of five of today's seven arrests.
Authorities learned the gang of robbers planned to hit the branch of Regents Bank inside the Kroger grocery store at Shiloh and Campbell in Garland Monday morning. Officials were waiting for the men at the bank and FBI agents arrested two people there.
Other members of the gang fled in two separate cars, a gold car and a white vehicle.
The driver of the gold-colored car fled on the Bush Turnpike, heading north and west to Plano. He ended up at a Costco store at 1701 Dallas North Tollway, near the Bush Turnpike.
The white-colored vehicle drove south into Dallas. One of the men in the car jumped out at an apartment complex at McCree Road and Jupiter Road in Dallas.
Authorities say the man burst into an apartment and demanded that the tenant hide him from police. The tenant apparently called her father for help, who talked to the suspect on the phone and asked the man not to hurt his daughter. Officers arrested the suspect after searching the complex. Police later questioned the tenant and released her after determining that she did not know the man.
After that suspect jumped out of the Cadillac, the driver continued south to a strip mall at Jupiter and Northwest Highway. He stopped in the parking lot and police arrested him.
While those arrests were taking place, the Plano Police Department's SWAT team was surrounding the Costco store at Park and Dallas Parkway. That's where the suspect who fled the bank in the gold-colored car stopped.
The unidentified man abandoned his car in the parking lot of the warehouse store, where customers and employees found themselves caught in the middle of the search.
Authorities say the man ran into the huge warehouse, and the standoff began. "They had everything blocked off," customer Greg Connell said.
Plano Police officers surrounded the building, leading a line of people out a side door.
Dallas Special Weapons and Tactics team members joined the standoff with heavy duty tank-like vehicles rolling to the warehouse.
"There were never any hostages," FBI Special Agent in charge Kevin Kolbye said, after authorities acknowledged the apprehension of the suspect.
"We have no comment at this time", came the chorus from three Costco managers at the front of the store.
Authorities transported the suspect away and towed the gold-colored car from the scene.
At an afternoon news conference, FBI spokespersons said a total of seven people were arrested Monday. They would not provide any information about the arrests. They also said they wouldn't rule out more arrests.
FBI officials said today's arrests were part of what they called the "Safe Streets Task Force." They say it involved law enforcement at the local, state and federal levels. Officials said they gathered information about the group's previous robberies. Agents say they think they prevented a robbery today because of what they learned.
The FBI spokespersons said no one was hurt in today's arrests. The suspects will face federal bank robbery charges.
The Scarecrow Bandits got their nickname because of their habit of wearing plaid shirts and floppy-brim straw hats during some robberies.
A $90,000 reward is in effect for the Scarecrow Bandits.
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