Woman Arrested in Connection with Berwyn Bank Robbery

CHARLENE M. TROOP, age 23, 1414 S. Kenilworth, Berwyn, IL, was arrested on Friday, December 2, 2011, by officers of the Berwyn Police Department in connection with the December 2 robbery of the Chase Bank, located at 6969 Ogden Avenue, Berwyn, IL.

According to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court today, a lone female robber walked into the Chase Bank on December 2, handed the teller a note announcing a robbery, claimed she had a weapon, and threatened harm if her demand for cash was not met. She handed the teller an envelope and instructed the teller to put the cash inside. The teller placed the cash, along with a dye pack, into the envelope. The robber then exited the bank. According to a witness, the robber was observed in the bank parking lot carrying a white bag, which soon thereafter exploded from the dye pack. After grabbing the money and placing it in her coat, she entered a Dodge Caravan and drove away.

Subsequent investigation by the Berwyn Police Department and the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force led to the identification and arrest of TROOP. She was charged today with one count of bank robbery. TROOP is being held without bond pending her next scheduled court appearance on December 8, 2011, at 11:00 a.m.

Although being charged with just the December 2 Berwyn bank robbery, it is believed TROOP is suspect in the November 18 robbery of the Citizens Community Bank, 7025 West Roosevelt Avenue, Berwyn; and the November 10 robbery of the Metropolitan Bank, 8744 Ogden Avenue, Lyons, Illinois.

Additional information about this and other Chicago area bank robberies, including downloadable photographs, is available on the Bandit Tracker Chicago website, www.bandittrackerchicago.com.

The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt and that all defendants in a criminal case are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.