EVERETT — For two months, a heavyset bank robber with gray hair and a scruffy beard avoided arrest.
He hit the Chase Bank in Arlington on June 30 and Key Bank in Snohomish on July 28.
Police believe his luck ran out after a third bank robbery, this one Monday at Union Bank in Monroe.
Harold Massena, 52, of Everett, was arrested Tuesday evening after a tip from someone who saw the suspect’s photo on a television news report.
A judge on Wednesday set bail at $500,000 for Massena, who had no previous felony history.
Massena told police he was out of work, facing eviction and had no choice but to rob the banks, according to court papers.
The suspect allegedly detailed each location and his escape routes and drew maps showing where he parked.
He was wearing a pair of pants with a red stain on them when he was arrested at his home in the 600 block of 46th Street SE. Massena allegedly admitted that a dye pack exploded on his pants after the Monroe bank robbery.
He also told police the exploding dye pack discouraged him from committing a fourth robbery, according to court papers. That one was planned for Lake Stevens on Monday, the same day the Monroe bank was robbed.
Police recovered a bag used to store money, a note demanding cash and other clothing believed worn during the robberies.
Snohomish Police Cmdr. AJ Bryant said detectives from Snohomish, Arlington, Monroe and the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office worked together and shared information.
“Collectively, it was much easier,” he said.
Snohomish Police Chief John Turner said all the police agencies did excellent work gathering information and evidence immediately after each of the robberies. Bank tellers in Snohomish and Arlington reportedly were able to identify Massena from a group of photos on Tuesday.
The tip from the TV viewer demonstrated “the power of police, media and the public working together for the good of all,” Monroe Police Chief Tim Quenzer said.
A key piece of information was a bank teller description of a car driven away after the Snohomish bank robbery in July. It was described as a 1970s blue Chevrolet Nova or Chevelle. After getting the tip from the television watcher who suspected Massena was the bank robber, a detective drove by the suspect’s apartment and spotted a 1979 blue Chevrolet Nova registered to the Everett man.
As Massena came out of his home to surrender, he allegedly said something to the effect of “How did you guys get me? It must have been my car.”
Bryant said the robbery string might have been a sign of tough economic times.
Most bank robberies have a different motive, said Fred Gutt, a special agent for the FBI in Seattle.
“The vast majority of bank robberies have been and continue to be drug related,” he said.
So far this year, there have been 110 bank robberies in Washington. Last year, there were 171.
The 10 bank robberies in Snohomish County so far in 2011 exceed the eight from a year ago, according to FBI statistics.
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@heraldnet.com.
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