Pleasant Prairie holdup suspect nabbed in Kentucky

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Beaver Bernard Russell, 47, of Benton Harbor, Mich., is accused of holding up seven banks.

Updated: March 15, 2012 8:08AM

A man who is accused of holding up a Pleasant Prairie, Wis., bank last week was captured in Kentucky after allegedly robbing two banks there.

Apparently Beaver Bernard Russell, 47, of Benton Harbor, Mich., traveled cross country to rob seven banks — and to violently steal purses from women in northwest Indiana parking lots.

He was being sought in connection with bank robberies in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin, and was also believed responsible for five purse snatchings and one armed robbery in northwest Indiana, all since Dec. 18, 2011, according to the FBI said.

But Russell’s crime spree came to a screeching halt Feb. 9 after he committed two bank robberies in Kentucky, one in Walton and another in Florence. After the second robbery, deputies with the Boone County Sheriff’s Office spotted the wanted vehicle and began a pursuit. Speeds reached 130 mph during the chase and stop sticks were deployed, the FBI said.

Russell’s vehicle flipped in the median several times and he tried to get out to run away, but was apprehended at the scene by deputies. Taken to the Boone County Jail, he is being held on Kentucky charges related to the vehicle pursuit and the bank robberies there.

While incarcerated, Russell was interviewed by FBI agents and admitted to robbing seven banks, including the one in Pleasant Prairie on Feb. 7, as well as five purse snatchings and the armed robbery of a student at Kaplan College in Hammond, Ind.

The other bank robberies occurred Jan. 5 in South Bend, Ind.; Jan. 9 at the US Bank in Lansing; Jan. 12 at the Fifth Third Bank in Munster, Ind.; and Jan. 26 in Toledo, Ohio.

The purse snatchings happened at the Majestic Star Casino in Gary, Ind.; Cabela’s in Hammond, Ind.; Wal-Mart in Michigan City, Ind.; and Southlake Mall in Hobart, Ind., the FBI said.

In all five purse snatchings, the victims were injured. Two happened at the casino, where one victim suffered a brain injury when she was pulled against Russell’s vehicle; and another victim suffered a leg injury when she was knocked down and run over, authorities said.

The crimes were committed by driving past the victims in the parking lot and grabbing their purses. The same car was used in each of the crimes, ultimately leading to the arrest.