Cyberclues Lead To Connecticut Robbery Arrest
Police in Norwich, Connecticut, say that a bank robbery suspect was arrested after leaving a trail of clues on the Internet, including an online search for “how not to rob a bank.”
The suspect, identified as 32-year-old Kevin Fitzpatrick, appeared in court on March 29 on charges of robbery and larceny for a September 28, 2005, robbery. He was being held on unrelated charges in New York when he was arrested.
According to police, Fitzpatrick was staying with a woman at the time of the robbery in Norwich and spent a lot of time on her computer. They had met on the Internet and had never met in person when he asked to stay for several days, borrowing her car on the day of the robbery and returning with a lot of cash, claiming that he won it at the Mohegan Sun casino.
They also allege that Fitzpatrick walked into Liberty Bank branch and handed a teller a note demanding money. A week later, a tip led police to the friend, who said she recognized Fitzpatrick from a surveillance photo posted on a newspaper website.
Police said that when the friend checked the log of her computer, she saw that a search had been conducted for “Norwich bank robbery.”
A police search of the computer yielded countless searches pertaining to bank robberies.
“Most times when citizens get involved, relaying honest and accurate information about what they see, it’s a benefit to the investigation,” police Captain Timothy Menard said.


