Duo Charged With Armed Robbery In Parking Lot Of Skokie Bank

SKOKIE, IL — Two men arrested last week are accused of robbing a woman at gunpoint at a Skokie bank, police said Tuesday. Around 9:30 a.m. on Jan. 14, police were called to the parking lot of North Shore Community Bank at 7800 Lincoln Ave. for a report that an armed robbery had just taken place.

A woman explained she had been on the way to make a deposit at the bank when two men in ski masks confronted her in the parking lot. One brandished a gun and they took her money and fled the scene in a stolen black Chevrolet Cruz before police arrived.

Alfonso J. Martinez, 25, of the 1400 block of West Olive Avenue, Chicago, was charged with armed robbery, aggravated robbery, battery, resisting a police officer and driving with a suspended license around 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 16 after he was spotted by a Skokie detective in the parking lot of the Walmart along with the stolen Chevrolet that had been used during the robbery. He was taken into custody after a short foot chase, police said.

Alvaro Garcia, 24, of the 2700 block of West Catalpa Avenue, Chicago, was charged with armed robbery and aggravated robbery. Police did not specify where and when he was arrested, saying only that "further investigation" led to his arrest. A police spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions about his arrest.

Garcia and Martinez appeared at a bond hearing Friday, where Garcia was ordered held in lieu of a $15,000 cash portion of his bond and Martinez in lieu of the $25,000 cash portion of his bond. As of Tuesday, both men remained detained at Cook County Jail ahead of a Jan. 25 court appearance.