Grandmother, 2nd Woman Arrested In String Of Bank Robberies
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Two women, one a grandmother, are accused in a string of bank robberies in the area. They are now under arrest.
Donna Poremski, 42, and Jasmine Parrish, 29, are in the Allegheny County Jail, facing robbery, conspiracy and related charges.
Police said the pair pulled off a $35,000 holdup at a PNC Bank on McKnight Road in McCandless in September. Then, they allegedly split the money in half.
KDKA talked to someone who knows Poremski, but didn't want to be identified. She said she's in a state of shock by Poremski's arrest.
"Poremski is a very good woman, great heart. She's a great grandma. I didn't expect this," the woman said. "I was stunned, I can't even think, honestly. It breaks my heart."
According to police, it was Poremski who forced all the McCandless bank employees into the vault at gunpoint and demanded they fill a bag with money.
Parrish then drove the getaway car.
Besides the McCandless robbery, law enforcement sources say Poremski and Parrish will be facing additional robbery charges for recent bank heists in West Mifflin and in Penn Hills.
Police say say an anonymous tip and a robbery in November at a PNC Bank in Bloomfield helped lead investigators to the pair.
A juvenile suspect was arrested in the Bloomfield robbery, and under questioning, the juvenile said Parrish put her up to it.
Sources say that Poremski became friends with Parrish when the two worked as nurses' aides in the Carrick area.