He stole $9,250 from a Texas bank. He rented a truck for $250 on the same day, feds say

Ronald Lynn Thomas was in arrears on a rented storage unit at the U-Haul on Flory Street, so officials there put a padlock on it.

On Monday, Thomas, 58, told storage officials he would return on Tuesday with money to pay the back rent.

He robbed the Wells Fargo Bank of $9,250 on Tuesday, according to federal court documents, and returned to the U-Haul business where he rented a truck for $250 and was arrested Tuesday afternoon.

He faces a federal charge of bank robbery.

A federal criminal complaint says Thomas handed a teller at Wells Fargo Bank, 6964 Boulevard 26, a note about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday saying, “Give me all the money or it’s going to get ugly.” He demanded large bills.

A teller handed him $9,250 and he fled on a lime bicycle.

A few minutes later, two witnesses observed the suspect running into a nearby neighborhood.

Police canvassed the neighborhood with photographs of the suspect taken by bank surveillance cameras. Two residents recognized the robber as a man who they believed was living at a nearby U-Haul storage unit on Flory Street.

When they arrived at U-Haul, police showed a photograph of the suspect to a manager who said it was one of his customers, Ronald Lynn Thomas. He told the officers about how Thomas owed back rent on a unit and Thomas had promised to return to the business on Tuesday.

Officers stopped Thomas about 5 p.m. Tuesday, driving the rented truck. Authorities found a roll of $100 bills in his pocket and recovered $7,916 in cash from a bag found in of the truck.

Thomas admitted renting a truck, but he did not make a statement about the bank robbery, according to court documents.

This story was originally published August 24, 2018 at 2:02 PM.