A man who allegedly robbed a downtown bank this week refused to speak to CPD officers who arrested him moments after the heist but later had a free-flowing discussion with FBI agents after explaining that he just didn’t want to talk to Chicago cops, according to federal court records.
Luther Fluker, 42, is charged with robbing Citibank, 1 East Oak, of about $2,400 on Tuesday afternoon.
The robber walked into the bank just after 1 p.m. and handed the teller a note that said, “put the money in the bag.”
Instead, the teller put cash into an envelope and handed it to the robber after being told that the robber didn’t want the money placed in his bag after all, an FBI agent said in the complaint against Fluker.
Chicago police spotted Fluker wearing clothes that matched the bank robber’s on the 800 block of North State about seven minutes after the hold-up, the agent wrote.
Fluker tossed something into a garbage can as police approached him. Cops looked into the bin and found a CitiBank envelope containing $2,100 cash. They searched Fluker and allegedly found three $100 bills, three counterfeit $100 bills, two counterfeit $100 bills ripped in half, a counterfeit $20 bill, and a counterfeit $10 bill. Oh, and they found a note, written on Illinois Lottery paper that said, “put the money in the bag,” according to the complaint.
He refused to answer any questions asked by Chicago police and demanded an attorney, the FBI agent wrote.
Later, at FBI headquarters, an agent assured Fluker that they would not ask him any questions since he wanted to speak with an attorney.
“At that point, Fluker told the agents he wanted to speak with them and explained that he just didn’t want to speak with the CPD earlier,” an agent wrote.
The FBI advised Fluker of his rights again and had him sign a written waiver of those rights. And he talked.
During the FBI interview, Fluker claimed he did nothing wrong except carry counterfeit bills that he uses to buy cigarettes at convenience stores, according to the agent. He identified himself in one surveillance image of the bank robber, but said another picture of the same person walking away from the bank teller was not him, the agent wrote.
Fluker then asked how much time someone might get for a robbery like that. After getting the FBI’s answer, he said he would stop answering questions and demanded a lawyer, according to the complaint.
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