- 9,996
- 200
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2004
Spit, chewing tobacco lead police to suspect in Monroe heist
By Diana Hefley
Herald Writer
MONROE -- FBI agents tailing a Lake Stevens man suspected of holding up an armored truck and using an inner tube to escape with the loot couldn't believe their luck when the man dropped a Gatorade bottle full of saliva and chewed tobacco into a garbage can at a gas station early last month.
Investigators were following the man in hopes of getting genetic evidence to compare to the DNA recovered at the scene of the Sept. 30 heist.
"Who would have guessed he'd be spitting in a bottle and drop it into a garbage can," Monroe police spokeswoman Debbie Willis said.
Monroe detectives and the FBI arrested Anthony Curcio, 28, Monday in the parking lot of the Lake Stevens Target. He was allegedly transferring a small safe from one vehicle to another. Police also say Curcio had a large amount of money on him. They believe the money may be part of the loot.
Curcio appeared briefly in Everett District Court where his bail was set at $250,000.
Police believe Curcio concocted an elaborate scheme to hold-up an armored car outside the Bank of America. He advertised for unsuspecting decoys on Craigslist and likely used an inner tube to escape by floating down a creek.
A possible dress rehearsal for the holdup three weeks before the Sept. 30 heist may have been the bandit's undoing.
A homeless man on Sept. 9 found a pile of items, including a baseball cap, a two-way radio, a black wig and canister of pepper spray near the Dumpster at the Bank of America, according to a search warrant. A man jumped out of a Chevy Trailblazer, grabbed the stuff and drove off, Willis said. The witness reported the incident to a city worker. He also called 911 but the call was mistakenly dispatched to Arlington police.
"They got the one thing we always want citizens to get - a license plate number," Willis said.
A couple days after the heist, detectives were provided the information about the earlier incident outside the bank, and began investigating the owner of the vehicle in connection with the Sept. 30 holdup. The registered owner is Curcio's wife.
Investigators with the state crime lab were able to match genetic evidence left on a particle mask discarded during the robbery to the bottle of spit investigators watched Curcio throw away, Willis said.
The man had a lot of money on him when he was arrested. Police believe he has been spending some of the money since the robbery, Willis said. She declined to say how much was taken during the holdup. Witnesses reported that he's been having financial problems but recently took a week-long trip to Las Vegas.
A second man, 26, also was arrested and booked into jail for possession of stolen property. It's unclear if he was involved in the robbery. Witnesses reported he has been using cash to buy thousands of dollars worth of goods, including a computer and furniture. He also allegedly went to Las Vegas with Curcio.
Investigators believe Curcio used an unsecured wireless connection to place an ad on Craigslist to draw decoys to the Bank of America. He advertised for laborers to work a landscape job near the bank. Numerous workers showed up wearing similar clothes to those the suspect wore during the heist.
Curcio is accused of pepper-spraying an armored truck guard and grabbing a satchel of money. He fled toward nearby Woods Creek. Police believe he used an inner tube to escape or at least used it to float the loot down the creek. Investigators recovered the inner tube about 200 yards from where he was seen entering the creek.
Police believe the inner tube was stolen and are asking for the public's help to identify it.
http://www.enterprisenews...S01/811049981/0/ETPZONELT
@ the fbi
