By JEFF LIPTON|
When he was unemployed, he supported his family by robbing banks in Franklin Square East Meadow, Oceanside and Valley Stream, according to Nassau County detectives.
That was the profile that emerged last week of Miller, 41, of Levittown, who was charged with robbing 17 banks in Nassau County during a two-year period, investigators said. "He was a construction worker who, when he wasn't working, resorted to robbing banks," said Detective Sgt. John Giambrone of the county's Robbery Squad. "During the time he was gainfully employed, he did not rob any banks.
"He also dabbled in cocaine, but this [robbery spree] was not fueled by a drug habit. This was done to support his family," said Giambrone, adding that Miller has a wife and two children, ages 11 and 10, from a previous marriage.
Police said that Miller, who never produced a weapon during the robbery spree, often handed bank tellers notes demanding money without saying a word. He was known as the "diamond-note bandit" because, in an attempt to disguise his handwriting, he would write his Q's in the shape of diamonds in his notes, which often said, "Give me the money quickly and quietly," detectives said.
Giambrone said that Miller began his robbery spree in October 2006 when he was unemployed, discontinued it in March 2007 when he was working and resumed his string of bank heists this year. "He was all over the place, robbing banks from Great Neck to Oceanside," said Giambrone, who added that Miller stole a total of between $30,000 and $40,000 during the spree. "He was very elusive."
Robbery Squad detectives and Bureau of Special Operations police officers arrested Miller near his home on June 3 at 12:52 p.m. He was charged with 17 counts of third-degree robbery, according to authorities.
Police said that during Miller's last alleged heist, at a Commerce Bank branch at 690 Hempstead Turnpike in Franklin Square on May 25, a witness saw him jump into a white Ford Focus. Led by Robbery Squad Detective William Butler, investigators researched the records of hundreds of those cars registered in the metropolitan area and narrowed their search to Franklin Square and New Hyde Park, where the first banks were robbed. They eventually came up with a car that was registered to Miller's father-in-law, who lives in Elmont, authorities said.
"He was going to eventually slip up," Giambrone said. "This was a guy who was able to get under the radar 17 times. Usually it doesn't take that long [to make an arrest]. But when you take a year off, it becomes harder.
"The detectives working this case are very talented and dedicated," Giambrone said. "Detective Butler did an excellent job; it's a credit to his skills."
The day after Miller was arrested, police charged another suspect, Thomas Kenney, in a separate robbery spree that involved 13 banks in Queens and Long Island. He was known as the "bad hatter" because of the ridiculous-looking headwear in which he would disguise himself, officials said.
County police are still looking for suspects in another two bank robbery patterns, including a man who, since February, has robbed three banks in Oceanside, three in Franklin Square and one in Baldwin.
Giambrone said that through the end of May, 35 Nassau County banks had been robbed so far this year, as compared with 51 in all of last year. But the total should grow more slowly now that Miller and Kenney are behind bars, police said. "We closed out a significant number of bank robberies in the county with those two arrests," said Sgt. Anthony Repalone, a police spokesman. "It's a good day for us. We have two open patterns out there and are trying to make some headway on those."
Suspects often rob banks to feed addictions such as drugs or gambling, but at other times a faltering economy may be all the motivation they need, officials said. "Sometimes, in their mind, desperate times call for desperate measures," said Giambrone. "Kenney, for instance, wanted to put his kid through college."
Comments about this story? JLipton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 210.
