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Posted on Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 1:30 p.m.

Suspect indicted in Ann Arbor area bank robberies

By Cindy Heflin

A suspect was indicted today in what the FBI called a series of "violent take-over style bank robberies" in Washtenaw County, including one in which a robber fired shots at tellers in an October 2010 heist in Ann Arbor.

Michael Jerome Henry, 20, of Ann Arbor, was indicted by a federal grand jury on bank robbery and weapons charges in two robberies that occurred in 2009.

He also is a suspect in the robbery at the Bank of America Branch at Packard Street and Eisenhower Parkway on Oct. 21 and the robbery of the TCF bank in Ypsilanti Township on March 5, the most recent of the four, according to documents filed with the court.

TCF-bank-robbery.jpg

A masked suspect leaps over the counter to steal cash from the TCF Bank branch in Ypsilanti Township in March.

Henry, also known as Bookie, was charged with the Sept. 22, 2009, robbery of Chase Bank in Superior Township and the Nov. 5, 2009, robbery of the Bank of America branch at Packard and Eisenhower in Ann Arbor, according to the grand jury indictment filed in federal court.

Court documents said all four robberies were of a similar style: The robbers wore masks and yelled at bank employees; a robber vaulted the counter to gain access to money; and in at least three of the robberies, a stolen vehicle was used to get to the bank and/or flee.

In the October 2010 robbery of the Bank of America branch in Ann Arbor, police said two masked men parked a stolen car in front of the bank, walked in and one of them fired several shots in the general direction of the five or six employees inside.

One shot narrowly missed a customer lying in front of the teller counter, court documents said. One of the men yelled at people to "get down on the floor" and said, "do you want to die," the documents said. The robbers fled with $11,966 and discarded several items of clothing as they fled, including a pillowcase that contained the stolen money, the documents said.

In a robbery of the same bank on Nov. 5, 2009, one of the robbers left behind a pink bandana, which the FBI crime lab said contained DNA that fits the DNA profile of Henry, court documents said. The bank robbers fled with $23,179 in that heist, court documents said.

DNA found on a black mask discarded after the Sept. 22, 2009, robbery of the Chase Bank at 5485 E. Huron River Drive in Superior Township also matched Henry's DNA profile, the documents said. The robbers took $4,385 in that incident, according to the documents

In the most recent robbery, at the TCF Bank at 2170 Packard Road on March 5, robbers wearing masks ordered tellers to "get your hands up" and said, "we don't want anyone to die," court documents said. The robbers fled with $4,431 in a stolen van, which was later recovered, documents said.

Henry, who court documents said is also a suspect in a Jan. 21, 2009, bank robbery in Houston, Texas, is federal custody and being held without bond.

Comments

Annjulie

Wed, Apr 27, 2011 : 9:29 a.m.

Sharing just about anything on Facebook nowadays seems like second nature to several. One group of young bank robbers shared their exploits on Facebook. This revealing, however, led to them all being arrested. Police officers checked Facebook after an unknown tip alerted them to the appearance of the postings. I found this here: Facebook posts lead to bank robbery arrests

treetowncartel

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 5:52 p.m.

How did they figure it out it was him?

Joe

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 5:24 p.m.

LOL....after I posted, it suddenly occurred to me that the "Bookies" of the world (my target audience) are likely not going to read my post. Sigh. Oh, well.

Joe

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 5:19 p.m.

Kids, crime doesn't pay. Rap pays, but the odds are low that you'll become the next Jay-Z. So get an education. If robbing a bank actually seems like a good idea to you, then put down the xbox controller and take a look around you. No excuses. Decide to become a positive member of the human race. After all, it IS your choice. This isn't the slums of a third world country...you can pretty much become whatever you want to become. And it doesn't have to involve an orange jumpsuit.

Garrett

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 12:31 p.m.

According to OTIS, I think the suspect's middle name is "Javone," not "Jerome."

SuperFreckleFace

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 10:17 a.m.

Do they suspect him of the Lake Trust Credit Union robbery that happened on October 28, 2010?

katie

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 4:42 a.m.

I hope he is charged with attempted murder, more than one count, not just bank robbery. It is one thing to rob, it is another to shoot at innocent people. Anyone who would do such a thing deserves to be put in jail for as long as possible, to keep the public safe.

Peregrine

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 10:11 p.m.

I understand and agree with the desire to put someone guilty of these crimes away for a long time to protect the public. But I am troubled by the tendency to escalate charges in non-sensical ways to achieve this. Do you or anyone who agrees with you honestly believe that he was attempting to murder the people in the bank? Because if it was his intention, he had the means and opportunity to do it. Although I wasn't there, it seems as though he was attempting to intimidate under threat of death those in the bank into submission. Yes, the guilty party endangered those in the bank. Yes, this was a selfish and cruel act of violence. And yes, such a person deserves a very severe punishment. But let's be honest in our suggested charges. A just system can only be just if it's honest.

jrigglem

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 2:28 a.m.

If he was charged with robbery in 2009, how was he out to rob again a year later?

amazonwarrior

Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 11:24 p.m.

Correction needed! ..... in which a robber filed [FIRED] shots at tellers in an ..........

Jen Eyer

Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 1:22 a.m.

Thank you. That has been corrected.