Cops Name Suspect In Multiple Bank Robberies

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The FBI says that Chad Earl Schaffner is the unidentified serial bank robber that has terrorized at least ten banks.

A bank robber who the FBI says has been terrorizing banks in six states since May 2009 has been identified. Agents have have identified the brazen serial robber as Chad Earl Schaffner, 36, of Indianapolis, Ind.

Agents are hoping that someone who knows where Schaffner is, will call police.

In one of the surveillance photos Schaffner is seen using a radio of some sort. Police say there is a good chance he could be traveling with someone.

Agents say Schaffner could be driving a red 1994 Chevy S10 pickup truck with South Carolina license plate EVE-177, or a 1994 GMC Jimmy pickup, faded black in color, with Tennessee license plate 360-WLN.  In the most recent robbery in Caseyville, Illinois, Schaffner was seen fleeing in a 1996 four-door Chrysler with Tennessee license plates 534 QHC.  A woman was also seen in the car.  
 

Brazen Serial Robber Terrorizing Banks

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Cops say Schaffner then hit the Wachovia Bank in Forest Acres, S.C. on May 28 and a First National Bank in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. on June 19, 2009.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, along with the FBI and numerous local law enforcement agencies  across six states are currently working around the clock to locate Schaffner.

Agent Van Williams with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations tells AMW that Chad Schaffner has never tried to hide his identity.

His M.O. is brazen: cops say he walks into the banks with no mask on, pulls a gun and orders everyone to the floor.  Police say he is very loud and threatening to tellers.

Luckily, no one has been hurt so far, but police are very concerned that if this man is not caught soon, someone will be.

Cops: At Least Ten Banks Hit In Just Four Months

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Police say Schaffner hit this bank in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Aug. 10, 2009.

Police say  Chad Scaffner began his spree on  May 7, 2009 in Louisville, Ky. and traveled to North Carolina where he hit the United Services Credit Union on May 15, in Fletcher, N.C.

He then hit the Wachovia Bank in Forest Acres, S.C. on May 28, they say, and a First National Bank in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. on June 19, 2009.

Then, for almost a month, it appears that he laid low, but resurfaced on July 6, when he hit the Lumbee Guarantee National Bank in Fayetteville, N.C., the Southern Bank in Edenton on July 15, and the First Citizens Bank in Hendersonville, S.C. on the 29th.

The month of  August hasn't  slowed down either.  The bandit, the FBI says, robbed the First Palmetto Savings Bank in Myrtle Beach on August 10 and two banks in Tennessee, the Community National Bank in Jefferson City and the First Tennessee Bank in Morristown, on the 18th.  It seems that Schaffner then left Tennessee and hit the United Commerce Bank in Bloomington, Indiana on August 28th.  Schaffner then continued traveling West and hit a Kroger's grocery story in Mt. Vernon, Illinois on September 4 and a UMB Bank in Caseyville, Illinois on September 9. 

AMW Capture #1089

Chad Schaffner Caught

Chad Schaffner, also known as the "Palmetto Bandit," has been captured.  The FBI says that Schaffner has robbed at least twelve banks since May.  His spree started in the Southeast and he gradually moved West, making stops in Kentucky, his home state of Indiana and Illinois along the Missouri border.  

Missouri was the last stop on his tour that terrified bank tellers and had law enforcement agents working around the clock.  Schaffner was arrested without incident in Kingdom City, Missouri on September 12th after an astute retired state trooper thought he recognized Schaffner and his car.  

Sam Lakey was attending parent's weekend at his sons' college when his cop instincts kicked in.  He was already suspicious of a car in the parking lot, but Sam became even more suspicious when a man wouldn't make eye contact with him in the breakfast area of the hotel. 

A avid AMW viewer, Sam checked out AMW.com and was able to confirm his instincts.  The man was Chad Schaffner, a serial bank robber who just days before had struck near Sam's hometown.  Sam called some of his buddies in law enforcement to make the arrest. 

Schaffner is AMW direct result capture #1089.