Don’t count on making a clean getaway if you rob a bank in Washington.
The odds aren’t good – in fact they’re worse here than in any other state.
Last year, 272 banks were robbed in Washington and 70 percent of those robbers were caught, according to a release issued by the Seattle Division of the FBI.
Nationally, of the 6,961 bank robberies 47 percent were solved last year.
In Snohomish County about 65 percent of the bank robberies were solved.
The county ranked third highest in the state for number of bank robberies last year, falling behind King and Pierce counties.
There were 23 bank robberies in the county in 2006. That’s about a dozen less than the previous year, said Larry Carr, bank robbery coordinator for the Seattle Division of the FBI.
Two high-profile robbers were caught shortly after holding up banks in the county.
A prolific bank robber, dubbed the “Euro Bandit” because of an apparent European accent, was arrested minutes after a Sultan bank heist in June. An alert customer copied down the license plate of his getaway car. A State Patrol trooper stopped the suspect a few minutes later.
Hildeberto Machado, 45, was recently sentenced to 61/2 years in prison. He is responsible for a string of robberies in Washington, California and Idaho.
More recently, a Lynnwood man was picked up six hours after he allegedly robbed a bank in Lynnwood. Police believe the man used a fake hand grenade to rob at least two banks in Lynnwood in November.
Alexander Vasitovich Ivanov, 51, has been indicted on two counts of bank robbery.
Statewide, the number of robberies last year increased about 18 percent from the previous year.
Of the 56 FBI field offices around the country, Seattle agents investigated the fourth largest number of robberies, falling behind Los Angeles, Boston and Philadelphia.
The high solution rate here likely can be attributed in part to the historically large number of bank robberies in Washington, Carr said.
“We’ve recognized it as a significant crime problem in this state and we’ve devoted the resources and people because of that,” said FBI spokeswoman Robbie Burroughs.
The success also can be attributed to good partnerships with local law enforcement, Carr said.
“We couldn’t do it alone. It takes the cooperation of everyone,” he said.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
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