MANCHESTER -- Police say a South Windsor man and a Manchester woman were arrested after double robbery attempts Sunday afternoon.
According to police, they received a 'hold up' alarm from the TD Bank on Deming Street. Police say when they got there, they learned a man in his 40s approached the tellers inside the bank, holding an empty bag. Police say the man had appeared nervous when the teller attempted to speak to him. The man left quickly after, and police determined it was an attempted robbery, prompting an alarm to be sent.
Police say the man, identified later as 44-year-old Dale Robbins, fled the scene in a red minivan which was driven by a woman.
Then, while officers were still at the TD Bank investigating, police say they received another 'hold up' alarm. This time, the alarm came from the United Bank inside the Big Y on the Tolland Turnpike.
When officers arrived at the United Bank, they learned that the suspect had run from the scene. The description of the suspect matched that of Robbins, police say. Employees at the bank said that Robbins had slipped a note to the teller, demanding money and implying he had a gun. Police say Robbins took a large amount of money and then fled the scene in the same red minivan which was at the TD Bank.
An officer out on patrol who was aware of the license plate registration on the van quickly found Robbins and the van at Motel 6 on the Hartford Turnpike in Vernon.
The owner of the van, a 42-year-old Manchester woman named Bambi Czernek, was found nearby. Robbins was found inside Motel 6.
Police say they searched the room Robbins and Czernek rented and found a large amount of money, a .22 cal. handgun, and the note that was used in the United Bank robbery. Police also found items used as a disguise by Robbins during the robberies.
Robbins and Czernek were both arrested and face the following charges:
Dale Robbins
TD Bank Incident:
United Bank Incident:
- Robbery 1st
- Conspiracy to Commit Robbery 1st
- Larceny 3rd
- Conspiracy to Commit Larceny 3rd
- Threatening 1st
- Conspiracy to Commit Threatening 1st
Bambi Czernek
TD Bank Incident:
United Bank Incident:
- Robbery 1st
- Conspiracy to Commit Robbery 1st
- Larceny 3rd
- Conspiracy to Commit Larceny 3rd
- Threatening 1st
- Conspiracy to Commit Threatening 1st
Robbins was held on a $400,000 bond and Czernek was held on a $300,000 bond. Both are scheduled to appear in court in Manchester.