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| Hanson (left) admitted to three bank robberies, the FBI says | Facebook; FBI |
A west suburban man is charged with robbing three North Side banks in six days this month, and he may be regretting his decision to get a new tattoo in April
34-year-old Eric Hanson admitted to robbing the banks after being taken into custody by the FBI at an Elk Grove Village motel on Saturday, according to an agent’s affidavit.
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| Hanson | Facebook |
Hanson is charged with robbing the Byline Bank at 1401 West Belmont on May 13; the Byline Bank at 3401 North Western on May 16; and the TCF Bank at 4355 North Sheridan on May 18.
One of the bank tellers told cops about a tattoo of two “X”s behind the robber’s ear.
Ultimately, it was the May 18th hold-up that did him in, according to the FBI.
While surveillance images from the first two robberies were poor, the TCF hold-up produced clear photographs that prompted two of Hanson’s former schoolmates to turn him in, according to prosecutors.
An agent checked out Hanson’s Facebook profile and quickly came across his April 20th post:
“Tattoo number 4” Hanson wrote about the two freshly-inked “X”s behind his left ear. “Life is great right now.”
Not for long.
Acting on a tip, FBI agents went to a northwest suburban Motel 6 on Saturday and knocked on Hanson’s door.
“Hanson invited myself and other agents into his hotel room, and I arrested him for bank robbery,” an agent later wrote.
The G-men recovered items from Hanson’s room that appeared on surveillance images of the robber, including a gray baseball cap, a White Sox hat, and sunglasses.
Back at FBI headquarters, Hanson waived his right to remain silent and freely admitted to robbing all three bank branches, an agent said.
