Jamese Christine Queen, according to county police, not only robbed the same Glen Burnie bank twice last month -- she went to the same teller.
Police said that teller's description of the robber's scaly hands -- officers said Queen has eczema -- and another employee's decision to follow Queen's car after a failed third robbery attempt on Saturday helped make an arrest.
At a news conference Monday morning in Millersville, county Police Chief Kevin Davis said employees' actions gave police "just the break we needed."
"Hopefully, this is her last attempt to rob a bank in Anne Arundel County," he said.
Police said that nearly two weeks after Queen, 47, a former school bus driver, robbed The Bank of Glen Burnie at 101 Crain Highway S., she returned on Sept. 28.
Queen, wearing her hair in braids pulled back underneath a green baseball cap, walked up to the teller and with "scaly hands" displayed a note demanding money.
"No dye pack this time," Queen told the teller. "I know when you come in, I know when you leave. Don't draw attention to yourself."
Police charged Queen in both robberies as well as an unsuccessful attempt Saturday at the bank's Severn branch, at 740 Stevenson Road.
Queen walked into the Severn branch at 12:07 p.m. and was recognized by a teller who told her to remove her cap, police said. When Queen displayed a note demanding money the teller refused, according to court records.
Queen fled and was followed by an employee who saw her in a black Hyundai XG300/350. The employee was able to obtain the vehicle tag number and gave it to police.
The vehicle matched the description of a car believed used in the Glen Burnie robberies. Police linked the vehicle to Queen, its registered owner.
Police detectives and FBI agents quickly identified Queen as the suspect in all three robberies, police said.
Around 4:09 p.m. Saturday, Officer John Hall found the Hyundai unoccupied in the 200 block of Woodhill Drive.
Police were given permission to enter a nearby apartment, where they found Queen either going in or coming out of a closet at the rear of the home, Hall said Monday.
They searched the apartment and the Hyundai and found clothing, as well as a stack of $10 bills stained with red dye and a note which read "EMPTY THE DRAWER."
Both are believed to be from the Sept. 13 robbery, according to court records.
Queen's physical description matched that of the woman given by witnesses in all three crimes. The 47-year-old suffers from eczema on her hands, giving them a scaly appearance similar to what the teller described, according to court records.
Queen was interviewed by police and subsequently admitted to both the Glen Burnie robberies and the attempted robbery in Severn, according to court records. Queen told police that she spent the money on bills.
Queen drove county school buses for four different contractors from 2009 to June 2012, schools spokesman Bob Mosier said. She was not a school employee.
Michael Livingston, CEO of The Bank of Glen Burnie, said he told the Glen Burnie teller Queen was caught. Livingston said the threat of a robbery is always in the back of the minds of tellers and bank employees.
The teller "was just extremely happy -- you could just see it in her face," Livingston said.
Saturday's attempt was the fourth time a robber targeted one of the bank's eight branches in the last month. The Crownsville branch, at 1221 Generals Highway, was robbed on Sept. 17.
In that robbery, police obtained a warrant for 28-year-old Pierre R. Washington. Washington is being held in Montgomery County on additional robbery charges, police spokesman Justin Mulcahy said.
Livingston said the bank changed its security and plans to meet with police to discuss additional improvements.
There have been 14 bank robberies in the county this year. Of them, police have closed 13 investigations, Davis said. ___
(c)2013 The Capital (Annapolis, Md.)
Visit The Capital (Annapolis, Md.) at www.hometownannapolis.com
Distributed by MCT Information Services
Related
Before You Go
