Bank robberies in Virginia have nearly doubled in the first six months of this year over the same period in 2008, likely the result of an expanding bank presence in Northern Virginia and a number of heists believed to be committed by serial robbers, the FBI said.
Between Jan. 1 and June 30, 60 banks were robbed in Virginia, 27 more than in the first half of 2008, when 33 banks were hit, FBI statistics released Monday show. The number of bank robberies in the District fell from 13 in 2008 to six in 2009 during that same period and rose only slightly in Maryland from 71 in 2008 to 76 in 2009.
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Joseph Persichini Jr., FBI assistant director for the Washington field office, said the jump in Virginia robberies was the product of a combination of factors.
“Despite the economy, banks continue to expand out,” Persichini said. “There are new banks coming in Northern Virginia. … They’re expanding out in Prince William and Loudoun.”
Just Sunday, a Manassas TD Bank at 8401 Digges Road was robbed around 1:30 p.m., police said. The suspect did not display a weapon when he approached a teller and demanded cash. The teller complied, and the suspect ran out heading toward the Canterbury Village Shopping Center.
The suspect was black, about 30 years old and was wearing a black short-sleeve shirt, dress pants and shoes, and dark sunglasses.
Persichini also said the rising number of robberies in Virginia could be the result of “a higher number of serial bank robbers, so although the number of suspects are down, the number of robberies are up.”
Anyone with information regarding Sunday’s bank robbery should call Manassas police at 703-330-0330. For information about Washington-area bank robberies, visit bankbandits.org.
