- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Bank robbery suspects remain in Marin custody; where prosecution takes place yet to be determined
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Law enforcement officials are continuing to investigate a series of bank robberies around the region to determine how many of them were the work of two Napa County men arrested on Thursday following a failed robbery attempt at a Novato bank that previously had been targeted.
Joshua James Metoxen, 23, of American Canyon was arrested on Thursday afternoon – along with his alleged accomplice, Jack Henry Dennis, 20, of Napa – according to a Friday report from the Novato Police Department.
Novato Police said it is working with various allied agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, to determine the involvement of both Metoxen and Dennis in bank robberies that have been reported around Northern California.
Metoxen is the suspect in two Middletown bank robberies, Westamerica Bank on Feb. 27 and Tri Counties Bank on March 7, where he escaped with undisclosed amounts of cash.
He’s also a suspect in bank robberies in Mill Valley, Santa Rosa and Rohnert Park, as well as Novato, where he’s alleged to have robbed the US Bank, located inside the Safeway at 5720 Nave Drive, on Feb. 19, officials reported.
On Thursday at 1:43 p.m., Novato Police officers and detectives responded to that same US Bank that previously had been robbed on the report of another robbery, according to the Novato Police report on the arrests.
Police said an employee had recognized Metoxen as having been involved in the Feb. 19 robbery. That employee then moved to a secure location and called police before Metoxen fled on foot.
A responding Novato Police detective located a vehicle leaving the area which was believed to be involved and conducted a high-risk traffic stop on northbound US Highway 101 on the Rowland Boulevard off-ramp, according to the report.
Metoxen and Dennis, who were inside the vehicle, were subsequently taken into custody, police reported. There were no injuries to the robbery victims, police or the suspects.
Lt. Oliver Collins of Novato Police told Lake County News on Friday that the car the men were using to flee the scene was a champagne- or gold-colored Honda Accord.
Collins said investigators are continuing to try to determine what crimes the men committed so decisions on where to take them for prosecution can be made.
“Our detectives are diligently working to try to put that together,” Collins said.
Part of that work is determining Dennis’ involvement. An accomplice had not previously been identified in the cases in Middletown, and Collins said no accomplice had been mentioned in the reports of the Feb. 19 Novato bank robbery. Collins said it’s possible Dennis could have been driving the getaway car in previous cases, although that has not been determined and remains under investigation.
He said the men could be tried independently in various counties, which is more expensive and less efficient, or the matter could be handled in one jurisdiction. “They’ll probably try to bundle them together,” Collins said of the various cases.
The decision on how to proceed with the prosecution will be based on input the FBI gives the Marin County District Attorney’s Office, since bank robbery is a federal crime, Collins said.
Metoxen is being held in the Marin County Jail on charges of felony robbery, burglary, attempted robbery, possession of a controlled substance, threatening a crime with intent to terrorize and misdemeanor grand theft, with bail set at $1 million, according to jail records.
He also has a $750,000 arrest warrant from Lake County noted on his booking sheet. That warrant was issued earlier this month after he was identified as the suspect in the two Middletown bank robberies.
Dennis is being held in the Marin County Jail on felony charges of attempted robbery and burglary, with bail set at $500,000, jail records indicated.
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