‘Traveling Bandit’ wanted in Mount Vernon bank robbery arrested in Colorado
The “Traveling Bandit” suspect wanted in six states for string of seven bank robberies including one in Mount Vernon has been arrested in Colorado, police said.
Jason Lee Robinson, 49, of Pikeville, Ky., was charged with bank robbery in federal court in Florida, according to court records. He was arrested Thursday in Fruita, Colo., without incident.
Robinson, who was released from federal prison in November after serving time for bank robbery, is accused of robbing the Fifth Third Bank in Mount Vernon at 2711 Broadway at 4:50 p.m. on Jan. 14. No one was injured in the robbery.
“Robinson was dubbed the ‘Traveling Bandit’ for allegedly robbing multiple banks across the country, including North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Illinois and Utah,” the Mount Vernon Police Department said in a news release.
Mount Vernon Assistant Police Chief Robert Brands told WSIL television station that “the interstate definitely played a part” in the Mount Vernon robbery.
Interstate 64 and Interstate 57 intersect near Mount Vernon.
Brands told WSIL that the suspect in the Mount Vernon robbery demanded money and implied he had a weapon.
The crime spree began on Dec. 28 in Aventura, Fla., when Robinson collected about $1,900 in a bank robbery, according to an affidavit filed by an FBI agent.
Here’s a roundup of the other robberies: Jan. 2 in Asheville, N.C.; Jan. 4 in Johnson City, Tenn.; Jan. 8 in Mount Juliet, Tenn.; Jan. 10 in Prattville, Ala.; and Jan. 17 in Price Branch, Utah, according to court records.
