The Hound wants to know: What's with all these out-of-towners robbing Lake County banks? We don't have enough homegrown talent that people from New York, Wisconsin and western suburbs have to hold up county financial institutions?
The latest out-of-towner, Tonya Littleton, traveled all the way from Schenectady, N.Y. to allegedly rob the Consumer's Credit Union in Waukegan on Sept. 7. Apparently, the suspect was visiting a friend and decided to make a quick withdrawal. She was the first woman in a good 10 years The Hound can remember that's been charged with robbing a bank.
Prior to Tonya's debut, a West Bend, Wis. man accused of robbing the First Bank branch in Gurnee on June 27 decided to take a side trip to the bank while on his way to Six Flags Great America. He walked out with $24,000.
Why his female friend, identified only as "Individual A" in U.S. District Court documents,
who allegedly went into the bank to ask directions and gave Thompson the layout of the bank, hasn't been charged only the FBI knows.
In July, a holdup man from west suburban Westmont held up the NorStates Branch in Round Lake.
Note to out-of-towners: Leave our banks alone! We've got enough future bank robbers right here in Lake County. Quit muscling into their territory.
OOTers figure they have less of a chance of being ID'd when the security video is shown on the evening news.
It's just a fad. They'll stop when the price of gas goes up, or when it hits them that they can't deduct it as a business expense on April 15.
THE HOUND SAYS: It's obvious these OOTERS (great name for a bar, what?) are following the age-old logic of yeggs: Go where the money is. Obviously, Lake County banks have the money, so they make it a one-stop trip. Rob a bank, visit Great America and Gurnee Mills. At least two of the bandits were arrested even though they were OOTERS. Only one of the photos were published.