Salt Lake City police recently arrested a man for allegedly robbing a bank for one dollar. The man’s stated goal was to go to federal prison.
Utah man arrested after police say he robbed a bank of just $1, then waited in the lobby for officers to arrive because he wanted to be sent to federal prison pic.twitter.com/HzY48fymh7
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On Monday, 65-year-old Donald Santacroce entered a Wells Fargo bank and presented the teller with a note demanding $1.
According to the police booking affidavit, the man’s note read: “Please pardon me for doing this but this is a robbery. Please give me $1. Thank you.”
The teller handed the man a dollar and asked him to leave, but Santacroce told the teller to contact the police. While they were waiting for officers from the Salt Lake City Police Department to arrive at the scene, Santacroce reportedly made a comment to the bank employees suggesting that they were lucky he didn’t have a weapon because it was taking a long time for the police to arrive.
“At this point, the branch manager said she ushered all of her employees into a back room for their safety where she locked the doors,” the affidavit stated, according to KSL.com.
The robber eventually got what he wanted: he was arrested and charged with the robbery.
“Officers booked Santacroce into the Salt Lake County Metro Jail on one count of robbery,” according to a press release from the Salt Lake City Police Department.
Santacroce was determined to be sent to federal prison, reportedly telling police that, if he didn’t get his desired outcome, he will do it again — and will request more money next time.
“Donald said he had done this because he wanted to get arrested and go to federal prison. Donald stated that if he gets out of jail, he will rob another bank and ask for more money next time trying to get the desired result of going to federal prison,” the arrest report read.
The man was also recently arrested by the Utah Highway Patrol for investigation of driving under the influence (DUI) and careless driving. Authorities say that when he was arrested, Santacroce had been driving with a suspended license from Missouri.
This isn’t the first time that a man robbed a bank for just $1. In June 2011, James Verone robbed a local bank in North Carolina — all because he didn’t have health insurance and wanted to get healthcare in prison. The 59-year-old man was suffering from multiple health issues and said that the robbery was his last resort.
