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Three Army Rangers knock off Tacoma, WA bank
Edited for brevity.A Canadian man suspected of helping three Fort Lewis [WA] Army Rangers rob a Tacoma bank last week turned himself in to U.S. authorities Sunday afternoon, said Michael Dion, an assistant U.S. attorney prosecuting the case. Tigray Robinson, 20, gave himself up to FBI agents in Washington near the Canadian border. Robinson, the fourth suspect to be arrested in connection with last Monday's robbery, is scheduled to appear today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma. A fifth suspect, believed to be Canadian, is still at large. In court documents, an FBI agent said the robbers showed "military-style precision and planning" when they took over a Tacoma branch of Bank of America and stole $54,000. The suspects wore soft body armor and wielded what appeared to be AK-47 assault rifles. Alex Blum, 19; Chad Palmer, 20; and Luke Sommer, 20, three Army Rangers based at Fort Lewis, were arrested and charged with armed bank robbery last week. Palmer and Blum hold the rank of private first class. What is it about BoA that attracts robbers with body armor and AK-47's? Besides the money, I mean... Sommer, who holds the rank of specialist fourth class, is believed by law enforcement to be the ringleader. He was arrested Friday at a store in Peachland, British Columbia, his hometown. Sommer has dual U.S. and Canadian citizenship, according to a law-enforcement official. According to charging papers, Blum said Sommer recruited two Canadians to take part in the robbery and paid Blum $10,000 to be the driver. A witness wrote down the license-plate number of the car Blum was driving, which is registered to Blum and his father. Oops--it's always the little details that bite you in the left buttock. Posted by: Dar 2006-08-14 |
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