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Elderly Fla. Man Robbed Bank to Pay Bills

Posted on: Wednesday, 11 February 2004, 06:00 CST

An elderly man told police he robbed a bank to pay his wife's medical bills. His wife was behind the wheel of a getaway car Tuesday when the 71-year-old man ran from the bank, police said. Her doctor's appointment was scheduled a half-hour later.

A dye pack exploded inside the bag of money, covering James Roland Clark as he left the bank. Clark and his wife, Deloris Jane Clark, 66, were arrested soon afterward, said Gainesville police Sgt. Keith Kameg.

Clark told police he threatened bank tellers saying he had a bomb, but it was actually a bag of sand, Kameg said.

The Alachua County Sheriff's Office Bomb Team detonated the bag of sand as a precaution.

"Even though he told us it was filled with sand, nobody wants to be the first person up to check," Kameg said. "If you allege it to be a bomb and you rob a bank with it, we're treating it like it's a bomb."

No one was injured during the robbery.

The couple was being held at Alachua County jail late Tuesday, charged with armed bank robbery. James Clark also faces a charge of threatening to discharge a destructive device.

James Clark has a federal criminal history dating back to 1954, Kameg said. Charges include bank robbery, mail fraud and conspiracy to grow and distribute marijuana, officers reported. He also had been sentenced in 1992 to 12 years in a federal prison on bank robbery charges.

Deloris Clark has no criminal history, Kameg said.

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