SEBASTIAN — For the second time in three days a lone male suspect has walked into an Indian River County bank, handed the teller a note and stole an undisclosed amount of cash, the latest at the Riverside National Bank located at 13633 US 1, Sebastian.The suspect Friday entered the bank on US 1 near Roseland Road shortly after noon and, after leaving with the cash, was seen getting into a white, ’80s model Ford Mustang. Authorities have been searching with foot patrol, K-9 units and helicopter.The man may be a suspect in numerous other bank robberies, including two in one day in Brevard County, according to the police dispatch. It is the second bank robbery in Indian River County this week after the First People’s Bank on Route 60 in Vero Beach was robbed on Tuesday.The investigation is currently being handled by the Sheriff’s office, but the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the FBI have also been notified of the rash of robberies that have taken place.Authorities believe the robber may have made his escape on Interstate 95 or headed in that direction. The man was last seen getting into the white Ford Mustang 5.0 near the corner of Roseland and Kelso, police dispatchers said.Indian River County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Thom Raulen said the Sheriff’s office had sent a detective to a meeting in Brevard County today about the recent string of bank robberies along the Treasure and Space coasts.”It is still our case as of this afternoon,” Raulen said. “We have consulted with the FBI and with and with FDLE and they have offered their cooperation, but it is common at this point for us to handle the bank robbery investigation when a weapon was not used and no one was injured.”On March 22, a Riverside Bank in Palm Bay was robbed and just a half-hour later a similar looking male suspect hit another bank in Melbourne. The man in question is also thought to be a suspect in the robbery of another Riverside Bank in Rockledge and a bank in Volusia County.In each of these cases, the robber compares to the description of today’s suspect in the Riverside Bank robbery — a white male about 6-feet tall with a thin build and wearing a baseball cap. In the Riverside Bank robbery Friday he was described as wearing a grey shirt, grey ball cap and pants with paint on them.Police dispatch said the man entered the bank, robbed it and then fled the scene on foot toward Roseland Road before getting into the vehicle.This article will be updated as more information becomes available.
