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Police Foil Bank Robber's Scuba Getaway
The Associated Press ^ | Apr 16, 2004 | Anon AP NW Stringer

Posted on 04/16/2004 2:41:26 PM PDT by Pharmboy

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - A bank robber wearing a wetsuit under his clothes tried to make a scuba-diving getaway but was tackled by police before he reached the water, authorities say.

Police subdued the man Thursday on the shore of Budd Inlet after a car chase, a crash and a sweaty quarter-mile dash through the woods, during which he tried to sprint into the water while lugging his diving gear and a backpack filled with the stolen cash, Sgt. Ray Holmes said.

Charles E. Coma, 35, was jailed on suspicion of robbery.

Police said Coma held up a bank Thursday with an assault rifle and fled with an undisclosed amount of money, leading police on a two-mile car chase. After crashing into a tree, he got out and ran, wearing a weight belt with an air tank and regulator slung over his shoulder, police said.

Coma managed to get close enough to toss the backpack into the water before officers tackled him on the shore and used a stun gun to halt him, Holmes said. The money was recovered.

Police found a pair of fins inside the car.

He had gone into the bank with a wetsuit under an overcoat or a sweatsuit, police said.

AP-ES-04-16-04 1616EDT


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; US: Washington
KEYWORDS: bankrobbery; scubadiving
He definitely gets some points for originality...(or maybe he saw The Italian Job).
1 posted on 04/16/2004 2:41:26 PM PDT by Pharmboy
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To: Pharmboy
Everything was going along swimmingly...... 'til the cops showed up.
2 posted on 04/16/2004 2:47:12 PM PDT by Gun142 (Where Will You Be When You Get Where You're Going? -- Jerry Clower)
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To: Pharmboy
I think there was a flick in the '80s called Amsterdammed or something like that which had a serial killer frogging around Holland's aquatic bohemia in scuba gear.
3 posted on 04/16/2004 2:47:38 PM PDT by HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity
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To: Pharmboy
Amsterdamned (1988)

Cast: Huub Stapel, Monique Van de Ven, Hidde Maas

Director: Dick Maas
Categories: Crime, Thriller
Synopsis

Now here's something you don't see every day: a skin-diving serial killer. Then again, since this melodrama takes place in Amsterdam, a town with almost as many canals as Venice, why should we be surprised that a murderer would swim from one killing to the next? A detective who isn't particularly fond of water tries to bring the finny fiend to justice. Essentially a B-grade slasher flick, Amsterdamned is distinguished by unexpectedly high production values. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

courtesy of http://www.blockbuster.com

4 posted on 04/16/2004 2:51:58 PM PDT by HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity
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To: Gun142
Everything was going along swimmingly...... 'til the cops showed up.

Where's FLIPPER?...When you need HIM/HER/IT. Is he dead or canned (Tuna_ed?)? :|

5 posted on 04/16/2004 2:54:28 PM PDT by skinkinthegrass (Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they aren't out to get you :)
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To: HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity
For a serial killer, the dive would get rid of the blood as an added bonus.
6 posted on 04/16/2004 2:57:39 PM PDT by Pharmboy (History's greatest agent for freedom: The US Armed Forces)
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To: Pharmboy
I have a mental image of this moron running in flippers with a bag o' cash.

No originality here this was done about 3 months ago by a mch more successful thief
7 posted on 04/16/2004 2:58:58 PM PDT by Mikey_1962
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To: Pharmboy
he tried to sprint into the water while lugging his diving gear and a backpack filled with the stolen cash

was jailed on suspicion of robbery

You think.

8 posted on 04/16/2004 3:02:15 PM PDT by sd-joe
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To: Mikey_1962
I have a mental image of this moron running in flippers with a bag o' cash.

Ever tried running while wearing flippers much less driving a car?

9 posted on 04/16/2004 3:22:10 PM PDT by NewHampshireDuo
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To: NewHampshireDuo
Sure! ohhh like you haven't....

Don't forget the bong and twelve pack
10 posted on 04/16/2004 3:23:53 PM PDT by Mikey_1962
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To: Pharmboy
after a car chase, a crash and a sweaty quarter-mile dash through the woods, during which he tried to sprint into the water while lugging his diving gear and a backpack filled with the stolen cash..

His plan probably looked good on paper...

11 posted on 04/16/2004 5:11:35 PM PDT by csvset
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