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Man robs bank, claims he has bomb

The suspect runs with the cash but is caught by dark, deputies say.

By JONATHAN ABEL
Published October 31, 2006

SPRING HILL - A bank robber who hit CenterState Bank on Monday took some money, but he was also generous enough to leave a package.

Unfortunately, he claimed the package was a bomb.

At 2:08 p.m., the Sheriff's Office got the call that the bank at 12435 Cortez Blvd. was being held up.

The man took a bag of money - the Sheriff's Office would not say how much - and ran into the neighborhood behind the bank.

The robber, who did not show a weapon, left the box on the counter with a note attached saying that it contained a bomb.

He wore a bandanna tied tight around his head, sunglasses, jeans, tennis shoes and a Florida State Seminoles sweatshirt.

As the robber eluded authorities Monday night, the two-story brick bank building was closed down and the bomb squad called in from Tampa.

A who's who of Sheriff's Office brass gathered in the bank parking lot awaiting the bomb squad. Or a possible explosion.

After two hours of careful examination, the box was X-rayed. It was full of car parts, not explosives.

Meanwhile, deputies, dogs and even a helicopter searched for the robber in the High Point retirement community behind the bank.

The suspect, identified by police as Mark Elliott, 31, was arrested at a friend's house in Spring Hill and charged Monday, just after 6 p.m.

Jonathan Abel can be reached at jabel@sptimes.com or 352 754-6114.

[Last modified October 30, 2006, 23:27:13]