Thursday, March 18, 2010

You can't rob a bank with a banana

'Banana' bank robber gets up to 20 years
Philadelphia man used fruit to imply he had a gun when he held up KNBT in Bethlehem

A Philadelphia man who stuffed a rotten banana in his pants to make it look as if he had a gun while robbing a Bethlehem bank pleaded guilty Tuesday and faces up to 20 years behind bars.
Lloyd Virgil Barclay, 52, admitted claiming he had a gun and threatening a clerk at KNBT bank on 920 W. Broad St. while stealing $800 on Sept. 2, 2009.
But Barclay didn't make it hard for police to catch him. Lehigh County Senior Deputy District Attorney Tonya Tharp said Barclay left behind his wallet, which contained two ID cards and a Social Security card. ''Yeah, I dropped that,'' Barclay told Judge Kelly L. Banach on Tuesday. ''Did you want to get caught?'' Banach asked. ''No,'' Barclay said with a laugh. ''I just dropped it.''
Banach is scheduled to sentence Barclay on the robbery charge next month. Barclay was on state parole when he was arrested, so he faces additional time for violating his parole. According to Tharp: Barclay slipped a note to a bank teller around 9:15 a.m. demanding money from her drawer. The note said the teller would be ''hurt immediately'' if she didn't comply. After receiving $800, he said he wanted more and told another employee he had a gun. Barclay then fled, leaving his wallet at the bank. Police matched the photo on his ID cards to the image of Barclay on a bank surveillance video and he was arrested two months later.
Barclay told investigators he kept a blackened banana in his pocket during the robbery to imply he had a gun. Police say they also found the note in Barclay's belongings that was given to the clerk demanding money. Barclay has been in Lehigh County Prison under $500,000 bail.

No comments: