Man Charged In Christmas Eve 2021 Darien Bank Robbery: Police

DARIEN, CT — Police said Tuesday they have charged a 42-year-old man in connection with a bank robbery that occurred in Darien nearly two years ago on Christmas Eve.

Joshua Riley, of Bellingham, Mass., was picked up by Darien police officers on an arrest warrant at Old Colony Correction Center in Bridgewater, Mass., on Nov. 10, police said in a news release.

Riley was charged with second-degree robbery. The charges stem from an incident that occurred on Dec. 24, 2021, according to police.

On that date, Darien police officers responded to the Peoples Bank on Old Kings Highway North after an alarm was activated, police said. While en route, officers found out that a GPS tracker from the bank was on the move and heading northbound on Interstate-95.

The bank manager told police that a man, later identified as Riley, entered the bank and jumped over the counter without saying anything, police noted.

The GPS tracker gave a location on Sherwood Island in Westport, and a blue car was found unoccupied in a parking lot, police said.

Officers from the Woonsocket, R.I., Police Department made contact with the registered owner of the car, who said they had lent the car to Riley, police added.

While searching the car, detectives found $2,746, and two GPS trackers sealed within the money packs, police said.

An arrest warrant for Riley was secured on Jan. 26, 2022, with a court-set bond of $250,000. He's scheduled to appear in Stamford Superior Court on Nov. 20.