Lafayette Police Arrest Alleged Serial Bank Robber
LAFAYETTE (BCN) - Lafayette police arrested a Pleasant Hill man last week in connection with a string of recent bank robberies, Lafayette police Detective Berch Parker said Monday.
Parker said 27-year-old Graham Poole is suspected of robbing a Citibank branch in Lafayette on Nov. 26. During the robbery, Poole allegedly claimed he had a gun, but no gun was actually seen, Parker said.
In the days after the robbery, investigators put out a flyer to local law enforcement agencies with images of the suspect taken from the bank's surveillance camera, Parker said.
The following Tuesday, investigators received a call from a detective in Pleasant Hill who told them that he had just interviewed a man in connection with an unrelated matter who looked like the bank robbery suspect.
Detectives reviewed the video of the interview and determined that it was their suspect, Parker said.
They also contacted Martinez police, who had responded to a similar bank robbery in their city.
Parker said he obtained a warrant and arrested Poole on Dec. 6.
After his arrest, Poole allegedly confessed to committing the robberies in Lafayette and Martinez as well as one in Folsom, Parker said.
Parker allegedly said that he robbed the banks to pay for his heroin habit, which was costing him about $150 a day, Parker said.
During a search of Poole's home, investigators found the clothing he allegedly wore during the bank robberies, Parker said.
Poole has been charged with two county of bank robbery in Contra Costa County and booked into the West County Detention Facility in Richmond.
He remained in jail Monday on $100,000 bail, according to a county jail official.
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