Suspect caught in Oregon after chase

BOISE - Boise Police say a man wanted for robbing two Boise banks Monday afternoon is in custody in Baker City, Oregon.

Boise Police detectives have obtained an arrest warrant for 47-year-old Kenneth Mitchell Casey. He is charged with two counts of robbery.

According to the Idaho Department of Correction, Casey walked away from the South Idaho Correctional Institution Community Work Center yesterday afternoon. He was an inmate driver and was discovered missing at 3:32 p.m. when he failed to return to the work center for his next scheduled run. According to IDOC, Casey was serving a 10-year to 20-year sentence for robbery out of Canyon County.

Monday afternoon, detectives were able link Casey's escape with the timing of the bank robberies.

IDOC

Kenneth Casey, 47, is charged with two counts of robbery.

Around 5 a.m. Tuesday, Boise Police were contacted by Baker City Police that they had attempted a traffic stop and the driver failed to yield to officers. After a short pursuit, the driver ran from the car and escaped on foot. Inside the vehicle, a Ford Mustang, police found evidence that connected to the Boise bank robberies.  An off-duty police dispatcher in a parking lot near the Baker City center spotted Casey again as he entered the Powder River. He was taken into police custody a short time later.

Casey is currently being held in Baker City on Oregon charges of reckless driving and eluding police.

Boise Police, along with immediate cooperation of the Idaho Department of Correction and the FBI, were able to identify the suspect. And Baker City Police helped bring him into custody.

Here are the details of Monday's bank robberies in Boise.

The first bank robbery occurred around 2:40 p.m. Monday at the Washington Federal Savings and Loan at 1789 Broadway Avenue in Boise.

Witnesses say a man came into the bank and threatened the teller with a note. He then fled on foot with an unknown amount of money.

Boise Police

Here is what the Wells Fargo Bank robbery suspect looks like. He was captured on surveillance camera.

No weapon was displayed during the robbery.

The second robbery occurred at 4:30 p.m. at the Wells Fargo Bank at 4594 N. Eagle Road, near McMillan and Eagle roads.

The suspect in both robberies was described as a white male in his mid 40s, about 6-feet tall, 190 pounds, wearing a red ball cap with an "A" logo, white T-shirt and blue jeans.

Boise Police say these are the 4th and 5th bank robberies in the city in 2008. Arrests have been made in two of the three previous cases.

The number of bank robberies in Boise has declined dramatically this year - down from a high of 19 in 2006. Four of them remain unsolved.

Detectives say one arrest often solves several bank robberies, which appears to be what has occurred in this case.

No word yet on when Casey will be extradited to Idaho to face those robbery charges.