I realize a story that begins with a bank robbery might not exactly sound like good news, but here’s the twist: 18 minutes after a Florida man held up a local bank and walked out with an undisclosed amount of cash he called the police to say he was sorry — and turn himself in.
Yes, I realize robbing a bank is wrong, even if you feel remorse afterward, but there’s something about the suspect, Tony Max Olea Jr., that makes us feel a bit proud of the man who grew a conscience immediately after he did something very, very illegal.
According to the Orlando Sentinelthe crime went down Tuesday morning at the Colonial Bank in Port Orange, Fla. Olea allegedly walked into the bank and in old-school bank robbery fashion he handed the teller a note that implied he had a gun.
“He demanded that the bank teller put all of the money in a bag, and he relayed to the bank teller that he was ‘desperate,’” a police statement said.
The teller — no doubt shaky – handed him some cash along with a dye pack, and Olea made a quick getaway in his black 2006 Volkswagon Jetta… but he certainly didn’t go on a spending spree.
Less than 20 minutes later he called 911 from a nearby Chevron gas station. The cops quickly arrived and arrested him, and he’s now being held at the county jail on a $20,000 bond.
Only Olea knows what prompted him to have a change of heart so soon after committing grand larceny, but we commend him for doing the right thing… even if it was a smidge too late.
Photo courtesy of p373 via Flickr.