Police: Bank robbed twice by fugitive
The man had confessed in 2002 to a holdup of the US Bank in Des Moines.
By TOM ALEX
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
If David John Pederson's surveillance photo at the US Bank on East Euclid
Avenue in Des Moines looked familiar to police, the bank apparently was
familiar to Pederson.
He had confessed to robbing it before.
In July 2002, Pederson admitted that he had robbed the Wells Fargo Bank at
2505 E. Euclid Ave. on April 29 and the US Bank at 2500 E. Euclid Ave. on
May 21 that year, Des Moines police said at the time.
Now the Minnesotan is wanted for allegedly robbing the US Bank at East
Euclid again - on Tuesday.
Pederson was never convicted of the 2002 holdup of the US Bank even though
he had confessed to the crime. Instead, he was found guilty in a string of
bank robberies in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota.
Des Moines police made public the surveillance photos from the robbery just
hours after it occurred. US Bank has offered a reward of up to $10,000 for
the arrest and conviction of the person responsible.
Pederson, 49, stands 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. An arrest
warrant has been issued charging him with second-degree robbery.
He is listed as an escapee from the Curt Forbes Residential Facility in
Ames, where he was serving part of his 80-month prison sentence for the
series of robberies.
Police said corrections officers were among the first to identify Pederson
after the bank surveillance photos were made public.
Pederson was charged in 2002 with robbing 12 banks. He was convicted of
committing six of the robberies: two in South Dakota, two in Nebraska, one
in the northern half of Iowa and one in the southern half of Iowa.
As part of his sentence for those crimes, he was ordered to pay $59,774 in
restitution.
Officials have not made public the amount that was stolen from the US Bank.
Editor's note: The suspect later was arrested in Nebraska.
Snack Attack Results in Arrest
By TOM ALEX
Register Staff Writer
The assault weapon listed on the Des Moines police report was a bag of Cheetos.
Patrick Hamman, 22, of 4904 S.W. 13th St., was arrested Sunday on a charge of domestic assault. Officers explained that the victim of the snack attack, Michael Hamman, lives with his adult son, Patrick, and that they became involved in an argument Sunday night.
Patrick Hamman picked up a bag of Cheetos and threw it at his father, hitting him in the face, police said. It hit him in the glasses, causing a cut to the bridge of Michael Hamman's nose.
The police report said: "Michael's T-shirt was also covered in Cheeto dust."
Patrick admitted being high on methamphetamine, police said. He was taken to the Polk County Jail without further incident.
The Former Police Officer Sat on Brandon Prothero Until Backup Arrived.
By TOM ALEX
Register Staff Writer
A Des Moines homeowner helped a police officer early Tuesday by tackling a fleeing vandalism suspect and sitting on him until another officer arrived.
Police arrested Brandon Prothero, 23, of 2847 S.E. Diehl Ave. on charges of criminal mischief, intoxication and interference with official acts. Officers were responding to reports of car windows being smashed by someone with a baseball bat.
The attacks were the latest in a series of car vandalism incidents in recent weeks.
On Aug. 11, 48 cases were filed involving car windows being shot with a BB gun. The total damage is expected to top $15,000.
"The last couple weeks, the south side has just been pounded," Police Lt. Mark Morgan said of recent damage by vandals.
"Last night, some of them apparently were drinking and creating havoc, and they eventually were caught," the lieutenant said.
Police didn't say why Prothero had been drinking, but Tuesday was his birthday, according to jail records. A companion, Mikel Vanarkel, 23, was charged with intoxication and interference.
James Schwartz, 54, was getting ready for work at his house on the south side of Des Moines about 2:15 a.m. when he noticed lights flashing in his front yard.
"I was getting ready for work - I have to be there by 3 a.m. - and I saw these lights flashing on my lawn," Schwartz said. "There was a black Cadillac on my lawn. An officer pulled her weapon and was telling them to freeze."
Schwartz stepped outside to make sure the officer had everything under control.
Officer Deanne Harding spoke briefly with Schwartz.
"She said, 'Sir, can you go back to the house?'" he said. "So I started walking back slowly, but I really didn't want to leave her alone until backup arrived."
What Harding didn't know was that Schwartz was a police officer in Arizona before she was born. He left that career behind years ago, but it turned out his instincts were still sharp.
When he saw one of the suspects pop out of the car and start running, Schwartz went after him and knocked him down. Harding's police report reads, "Schwartz then sat on top of Prothero until another officer arrived."
She was busy chasing the other suspect, later identified as Vanarkel, who also had made a run for it, according to police records.
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