74-year-old woman charged in Fairfield bank robbery needed $65K for possible scam

A 74-year-old woman with no criminal history was arrested for a bank robbery in Fairfield Township Friday.

The police incident report provides insight into what drove her to it.

Ann Mayers of Hamilton admitted to the crime and was charged with aggravated robbery with a firearm, police said.

The incident report suggests Mayers was a victim of an online scam and desperate for money.

The crime

At roughly 1:30 p.m. Friday, police responded to AurGroup Financial Credit Union at 3085 Creekside Drive for a bank robbery.

Credit union employees told police a tall woman with curly gray hair and glasses, dressed in a gray shirt, sweatpants and a COVID-19 mask, had entered the bank.

She had two bags, one of which the tellers saw had a gun inside, the tellers told police.

The woman demanded one of the tellers fill up a bag with money, the employees said.

The woman left the institution in a silver 2014 Hyundai Elantra, and an employee called the police.

Police identified the car by reviewing security footage and conducting various search methods. They then identified Mayers as the car's owner − and the primary suspect.

The arrest

At 3 p.m., the police arrived at Mayers' house in Hamilton.

Mayers met officers in the front of the residence with her sister, Linda. Mayers matched the tellers' description of the suspect, but she wore different clothing.

Police took Mayers into custody without incident, and officer Corey Stebbins drove Mayers to the Fairfield Township Police Department to be interviewed by detectives.

According to the incident report, Mayers, without being asked, told Stebbins, " I know why you're here."

"Why is that," Stebbins replied.

"The bank, AurGroup, I did it," Mayers said, according to the report.

The interview

At the police department, Mayers was made aware of her Miranda rights.

She subsequently admitted to robbing the AurGroup Financial Credit Union Bank and using a handgun to do it, the incident report reads.

Mayers said she did it because she needed money and had been thinking about doing it, the report reads.

She added that she threw out the clothing she wore during the robbery a few minutes after she drove off from the credit union, the incident report says.

When asked where the money and gun were, Mayers told officers they were inside her vehicle and gave explicit descriptions of their locations.

She gave officers verbal consent to look into her vehicle.

With a search warrant signed, different officers searched the car.

They found $568 divided into $50, $10, $5 and $1 bills.

Officers also found a loaded revolver.

The items were found in the exact location Mayers said they would be.

Mayers also pulled out $12 from her pocket and placed it on the interview table, saying she believed she got the cash from the robbery.

Potential motive

While Mayers was in custody, Linda spoke with officers and provided insight into a potential motive.

Linda told police that Mayers had spoken about committing a robbery a few times in the past few days, according to the report.

She voluntarily told police that her sister had been communicating with a man online for some time and that man told Mayers he was with U.S. Customs.

Linda said Mayers had borrowed large sums of money from family and friends to send to this man, the incident report reads.

She told Police Sgt. Brandon McCroskey, according to the report, she estimates that she gave her sister at least $5,000 while another friend gave Mayers $65,000.

Mayers made a statement to her sister about someone trying to take their house because she owes them $65,000 during a recorded jail phone call, the report reads.

Is Mayers a victim?

When asked if Mayers could be seen as a victim in this situation, McCroskey told the Enquirer, "two things can be true at once. She can be a victim, but it doesn't give legitimacy to victimizing other people, which she certainly did."

"Those bank tellers were terrified," he said. "She walked into a bank with a gun and robbed it.

"Two wrongs don't make a right."

What happens next?

Mayers has been charged with two felonies, including aggravated robbery with a firearm and tampering with evidence for throwing the clothing she wore out of the car.

She is currently being held at the Butler County Jail with a total bond of $100,000.

Mayers made a preliminary court appearance Wednesday.

McCroskey said Mayers will serve at least six years and likely anywhere from 10 to 15 years as things stand right now. He notes, however, that this timetable may change during the court process.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 74-year-old woman arrested after bank robbery in Fairfield Township