FBI: Robber told Waukegan teller, 'I will pop you'
A Zion man has been charged in connection to a robbery of a bank branch inside a Waukegan grocery story and is suspected to be the man who robbed a second Waukegan branch in early July.
Police arrested Larry D. Williams on Friday while acting on a tip from a witness who saw his photo in the media. Williams is accused of robbing the TCF Bank inside a Jewel-Osco at 3124 N. Lewis Ave., according to the FBI.
During the robbery, which occurred at 11:36 a.m. Wednesday, the robber told a teller that he needed change for a $20 bill, and when the teller opened the drawer, the man threw a plastic bag at the teller and said, “Fill it up,” according to a federal complaint.
Williams, 51, then displayed an object that looked like a handgun wrapped in a plastic bag and told the teller, “I will pop you,” according to the complaint. Williams fled the bank with $4,565, authorities said.
FBI agents obtained surveillance images of the robbery as well as video surveillance that showed the thief leave the store and drive away in a gray Mercury Gran Marquis, according to the complaint.
The witness who contacted FBI officials after seeing the suspect's photo in the media said he or she has known Williams for at least five years. The witness also said Williams drives a silver vehicle similar to a Ford Crown Victoria, which closely resembles the Mercury Grand Marquis, according to the FBI.
FBI agents located Williams on the 4800 block of South Michigan Avenue in Chicago on Friday, and he was later charged with one count of bank robbery.
Williams, whose last known address is in the 1220 block of Emmaus Avenue in Zion, is believed to be the suspect in a second bank robbery of a Waukegan TCF branch on July 2, according to the federal complaint.
Although he has not yet been charged in the second heist, the FBI says Williams is believed to be responsible for the robbery of the TCF Bank bank inside the Jewel-Osco at 922 N. Green Bay Road.
During the July 2 robbery, the thief passed a teller a handwritten note that said: “Don't be no hero and nobody will get hurt. Put all 100s, 50s, 20s, 10s in my bag. Don't make no noise. I will hurt you. I have nothing to lose or die for.”
The thief in that case fled with $2,650, according to authorities.
Williams is due in court Thursday.