Chicago — Federal prosecutors say the bank robber who exchanged gunfire with a security guard in the Loop on March 9 is in custody. Investigators caught a break because the bank robber allegedly gave his phone number to a stranger near the bank just 15 minutes before the heist—and the stranger later recognized him in media coverage about the holdup. They contacted the police.
Jawad Hakeem, 47, entered Fifth Third Bank, 1 South Wacker Drive, around 2:59 p.m., “carrying a loaded gun and engaged in a shoot-out with the Bank’s security guard,” an FBI agent wrote in a federal court complaint. “The Bank lost approximately $23,900 as a result of the robbery.”
Hakeem walked in, pointed a gun at two employees, and yelled words to the effect of “I’m robbing you! Get down! There is a bullet in the chamber!” according to the FBI agent.
He referred to both bank employees by the names on their name tags and threatened to kill them as he demanded $100,000 in $100 bills.
As the tellers stuffed money into bags, the security guard saw Hakeem from outside the bank. And Hakeem realized the guard was watching him, the FBI agent wrote.
The two men exchanged gunfire as Hakeem moved through the bank’s revolving door, with the guard firing all seven rounds in his revolver. He also suffered a hand injury.
Unfortunately for Hakeem, he lost his balance and dropped some of the money he had been given. Video recorded from nearby offices showed him bending over to scoop up the loose cash:
Several hours later, a witness called the police. They told investigators that they were standing in an alley near the bank, enjoying a smoke break, when a man who looked a lot like the bank robber walked up and identified himself as a “sugar daddy” who was running for president in 2024, the FBI agent wrote.
After about two minutes of video-recorded chit-chat, the “sugar daddy” gave the witness his phone number and told them how to remember it: 312 is for Chicago, and the last four digits are 1619, the year that slavery began in the United States, the federal complaint said.
The FBI determined that the phone number was registered to Hakeem. Agents also allegedly found Hakeem’s Facebook page. On it, he claimed, “I’ve been a $ugar_Daddy 💋 since 2005. I have 20,000 $ugar_Babies 😘 in each of the 20,000 cities of the USA.”
He also boasted that he “will be the next President 🇺🇸 of the United States of America 🇺🇸”
Investigators also learned that Hakeem left clothing and a gun inside a South Side motel room a couple of days after the bank robbery, the complaint said. Hotel staff gave the weapon to Chicago police, and they gave Hakeem’s clothing, including a pair of winter gloves identical to those worn by the bank robber, to the FBI.