Drone Helps Nab Union Bank Robber In Midst Of Snowstorm: Police

UNION, NJ — In the middle of a snowstorm and with the help of a drone, police were able to chase down and arrest an Elizabeth man, who later admitted to robbing the same Union County bank twice in the past 3 months, according to Union Township Police.

A panic alarm from the TD Bank at 995 Morris Ave. in Union was activated on Wednesday at 3:48 p.m. after a man gave a threatening note stating that he had a gun to a teller, said police.

A bank employee also gave a description of the man who fled with cash, said police.

Union Township Officer Sal Valentino saw a man matching the description on North Avenue and tried to stop him, but he ran into the wooded area near the east campus of Kean University, said police.

Valentino chased the man through the woods until he lost him near the Elizabeth River. Valentino then found discarded clothing along the route that the man had left behind while he was running, said police.

With the help of Elizabeth police officers, the Union County Police Department, and the Kean University Police Department, officers set up a perimeter around the large wooded area.

Using a drone, the man was found hiding behind a home on Mary Alice Court. The man, later identified as Frederick Herman, 50, from Elizabeth, was arrested with a little over $500, said police.

Herman later confessed to robbing the bank to detectives Robert Kiselow and Chris Lensi. He also confessed to robbing the same bank branch on Oct. 14, said police.

For the Wednesday robbery, Herman was charged with first-degree armed robbery, obstruction/eluding for running from the officers, and possession of prescription drugs without a valid prescription (Buprenorphine Hydrochloride and Naloxone Hydrochloride (Sublingual) pills).

Herman is being held at Union Township Police Headquarters pending the additional charges for the October robbery until being sent to the Union County Jail.

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