A 38-year-old Blaine man has been sentenced after admitting that he robbed a Coon Rapids bank, using a cab to get there and get away.
Theron P. Washington was sentenced Tuesday to three years and 10 months in prison in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis for holding up the Northeast Bank at 200 Coon Rapids Blvd. June 8 and making off with $3,000.
Police said the cabdriver was unaware that his fare had robbed the bank. According to the plea agreement:
Washington gave a teller a note that read, "Count out $3,000 and you won't get hurt." After receiving the cash, he fled in the same taxi that brought him to the bank.
The bank vice president recognized Washington as having been at the bank two weeks earlier, inquiring about opening an account. The vice president also provided the taxi's license plate number to police.
Officers tracked the taxi and learned that it dropped Washington off at the Northtown Shopping Center in Blaine. Police arrested him there. They found 29 $100 bills in his possession. Another $100 bill was retrieved from the cabdriver.
PAUL WALSH
