A man suspected of robbing a bank in West Vancouver Sept. 19 has been arrested and may face charges of robbing several Lower Mainland banks, thanks in part to a fluke report from an observant West Vancouver citizen.
West Vancouver Police were called out after a man entered a bank in the 1500 block of Marine Drive Sept. 19, told the teller he had a gun and demanded money. After the teller handed over cash, the man fled on foot.
Fortunately for police, however, an alert citizen – who hadn’t even heard about the robbery – called in shortly after to complain about a car being driven erratically and at high speed in the same area. That person was able to provide a description of a black Buick Verano.
A review of surveillance video from the bank later revealed a car matching the same description driving past the bank shortly before the robbery occurred.
Detectives spoke to police in other areas of the Lower Mainland, including Burnaby and New Westminster, where similar robberies had recently taken place and discovered the same car also showed up on video surveillance there.
They then put out an alert.
When two bank robberies occurred Oct. 4 in Vancouver, officers spotted the same car nearby and pulled it over. Further evidence at the scene led to an arrest.
Charged with several offences, including three counts of robbery and three counts of using an imitation gun while committing an offence, is 49-year-old Patrice Rino Blais of Vancouver. He remains in custody pending a bail hearing in Vancouver provincial court.
