MARYSVILLE — A Texan with a mohawk and piercings scoped out a Marysville bank days before he walked in with a handgun to rob it, prosecutors wrote in court papers.
Ben McClean, 22, allegedly admitted that he brought two guns with him from Texas because he figured there was a good chance he would lose his life savings gambling and would need to rob a bank.
Prosecutors have charged McClean with first-degree robbery for the March 6 heist at Home Street Bank in Marysville. He also is a suspect in two hold ups in the Houston area, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Bob Langbehn wrote in charging papers.
McClean pleaded not guilty last week. He was being held on $500,000 bail.
Witnesses told investigators that they had seen McClean in the bank before the robbery. He asked about opening an account. He also was seen near the bank’s dumpsters the day it was robbed.
Police were told that McClean walked into the bank, racked the slide on his gun as if chambering a round and pointed the weapon at a teller. He demanded cash and told her she had 20 seconds or they were all going to die.
Another bank employee called 911. McClean noticed the woman on the phone and pointed the gun at her, ordering her to hang up. He ran out of the bank with $7,000.
Police swarmed the bank, including an officer with a dog. The dog picked up a scent and rushed to some bushes 200 feet away. Police found clothing and began yelling orders for the man to surrender. The police dog lunged into the bushes and came out with McClean, who had a wad of cash and a handgun in his waistband.
Bank employees identified him as the robber.
McClean later explained that he emptied his bank account of nearly $8,000 and flew from Houston to Seattle four days earlier with gambling on his mind.
He lost all of his money at casinos and started looking for the right bank to rob.
“You really can’t go any lower so you might as well give it a go, that is why I robbed it,” McClean allegedly told detectives.
He wasn’t going to shoot anyone, McClean said. He admitted that he had threatened to shoot the tellers if they didn’t move quick enough. Officers examined his gun and found that it was loaded.
McClean said he ran into the bushes with the intention of changing his clothes, but the dog thwarted his getaway. He also allegedly confessed to robbing two banks in Houston.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley.
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