New Kensington man arrested in Arnold bank heist

HARRISON -- For the second time in four years, a New Kensington man made it easy for police to find him.

Robert Joris, 45, of Barnes Street, was arrested Wednesday night on bank robbery charges after Harrison police found him visiting a patient at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Natrona Heights.

Joris is accused of robbing the National City Bank along Fifth Avenue in Arnold in December.

The FBI in Pittsburgh had issued an arrest warrant for Joris and notified township police that he was seen visiting an unidentified patient earlier Wednesday.

Federal investigators expected him to return that evening, and hospital security alerted police when they saw him.

Harrison Police Sgt. Michael Ropelewski said police arrested Joris without incident at the hospital at about 8:30 p.m. Ropelewski said the FBI had faxed police a picture of Joris, although he had shorter hair and no longer had a beard when they apprehended him.

The Arnold bank robber had a dirty, green-and-white MiniMate cooler and reportedly told the bank teller there was a bomb inside.

There was no bomb, but the robber was able to flee with an undisclosed amount of cash. The Allegheny County bomb squad was called as a precaution, although neighboring businesses and residents were not evacuated because police did not believe there was a credible threat.

The FBI previously said the robber might have been a construction worker because the man wore work boots and clothing speckled with paint and he carried an electric stud finder.

It was unknown Wednesday night whether Joris works in construction or why he was identified as a suspect. Harrison police referred questions to FBI Agent Rick McGlennon, who could not be reached for comment Wednesday night.

Ropelewski said Joris would spend the night in the Allegheny County Jail and would be arraigned on armed bank robbery charges before a U.S. magistrate in Pittsburgh this morning.

This is not Joris' first run-in with police.

He was arrested in January 2000 after he allegedly broke a window and stole money from Gabe's Market along Taylor Avenue in New Kensington.

New Kensington police tracked a trail of blood from the store to a Kenneth Avenue house where Joris allegedly had been and found the brick reportedly used to break the window. Joris was found nearby with his finger bleeding profusely and in need of eight stiches.