The suspect involved in the November 24th robbery of the U.S. Bank turned himself into police this week after his photo was published in the news media and he was recognized by relatives who urged him to surrender. The FBI, which led the investigation with Bridgeview Police into the robbery of the U.S. Bank, 8739 S. Harlem Ave., on Tuesday Nov. 24 turned over jurisdiction to Bridgeview Police for prosecution. Bridgeview Police Chief Walter Klimek praised the actions of the suspect’s relatives in urging him to surrender to police. “The suspect had been clearly identified in the photo from the Bank and it was just a matter of time,” Chief Klimek said. Klimek said that the suspect, Anselmo Tapia, 45, a resident of Oak Lawn, turned himself in to Burbank police on Friday, Nov. 27.

Using a photo captured by the bank’s surveillance system, police distributed the photo and physical description of the suspect to the media and to the public. Tapia, described as approximately 5 feet 6 inches tall with a heavy build, wearing glasses, a hooded sweatshirt and a baseball cap, walked up to a bank teller window and passed a note to the bank employee demanding money, claiming to have a gun. No one was injured during the robbery. Tapia provided a confession indicating that he robbed the U.S. Bank branch because he owned money to another individual. Bridgeview police charged Tapia with Aggravated Robbery. Tapia’s bond was set at $100,000.00. Tapia appeared in court on December 1st at the 5th District Court in Bridgeview.