Bank Teller Helps Police Capture Would Be Thief In Upper Merion: Cops

UPPER MERION, PA — A man attempting to use a stolen identity to steal funds through a bank withdrawal in Upper Merion was caught thanks to the help of an alert bank teller, police announced Tuesday.

The incident occurred on Monday, Aug. 7 at around 4:40 p.m. at the WSFS Bank on 655 W. DeKalb Pike.

A customer came in and requested to withdraw about $5,000 from an account, police said. The teller said the identification presented by the man was suspicious, and alerted authorities.

The man, a resident of New York City, had attempted the same theft earlier in the day at a WSFS branch in West Whiteland.

He fled from the DeKalb Pike bank before police arrived, according to authorities. But with a close description provided by the bank, officers were able to track him down a short time later near the King of Prussia Mall's Blue parking garage.

When the man saw police, he tried to flee down to the second level of the garage but he eventually stopped and surrendered, according to officials.

He was cahrged with forgery, identity theft, credit card fraud, and related counts, and was booked at Montgomery County Correctional Facility.

A preliminary hearing is forthcoming.