Wicker Park 'Mummy Bandit' Unconfirmed in Northcenter Bank Robber Arrest

Officers have arrested a man who they say is responsible for robbing a Northcenter bank Sunday morning, but FBI officials are unsure if the suspect is also responsible for two bank robberies in Wicker Park. 

Erwin Acox, 39, of the 5100 block of North Kimball Avenue, was charged late Monday with one count of bank robbery, according to a statement from FBI Media coordinator Joan Hyde.

The complaint says Acox entered TCF Bank, located in Jewel-Osco, 4250 N. Lincoln Ave., at 10:05 a.m. and approached a teller who was holding 20 $100 bills in her hand.

He walked up to the teller's counter, reached across it and grabbed the bills out of her hand. He "struggled with (her) ... and said in a deep voice, 'Give me the money in your drawer,'" according to the complaint.

He repeated himself two more times before the teller relinquished the cash, the complaint says, and managed to steal $2,708 before walking away.

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Chicago Police officers said they later spotted a man riding a red Schwinn bicycle who matched the description of the robber—he stands at about 6 feet tall and walks with a limp, tellers said. He used white tape to cover his face during the stickup and wore a red coat with silky fabric paired with blue jeans, according to the complaint.

Officers took him into custody without incident and then turned him over to the FBI. During a search, officers found more than $2,000 and a 3-inch knife on Acox. 

If convicted of the felony charge, he could face up to 20 years in prison, FBI officials said.

They had not confirmed as of noon Tuesday that Acox is the "Mummy Bandit," plaguing the North Side, though officials said earlier this week that the bandit was behind the Northcenter robbery. The same suspect was responsible for four other bank robberies in the area, police have said.

Two of those robberies occurred in Wicker Park in February and March. Both were North Community Bank branches at 1555 N. Damen Ave. and 2000 W. W. Division St. 

"Because the criminal complaint does not tie him to any other robberies, I cannot identify Mr. Acox as the individual suspected of committing the Mummy Bandit robberies," Hyde said in an email to Patch.

Read more: 

• 'Mummy Bandit' Continues Bank Robberies on the North Side
• Police Looking for Bank Robber Near Lincoln Square