PINECREST, FLA. (WSVN) - A man was taken into police custody in Pinecrest thanks to good Samaritans who helped chase down the suspected thief.
According to a Village of Pinecrest spokesperson, 40-year-old Brian James Kleb snatched $1,540 worth of cash from a woman making a deposit Monday at a Wells Fargo on Pinecrest Parkway. Kleb fled the bank and was followed by three Wells Fargo employees.
According to city officials, two nearby construction workers joined in and all five of the good Samaritans helped pin down the man until police arrived.
The victim, Delisa Urbaneja, described her thought process when Kleb approached her inside the bank.
“I saw the white subject getting close to me. I thought he had left something where I was,” she said through a translator. “That’s when he grabs my money that I was going to give the bank employee. My reaction was to run after him.”
Urbaneja wasn’t the only person running after the man. Cell phone video showed good Samaritans in the area joined in on the takedown, along South Dixie Highway.
“He’s screaming something, and I’m reading his lips, and he says ‘stop him,'” said Henry Marinello, “I instinctively put the car in park, jumped out and started chasing the guy, and I chased him all the way to the point where I actually grabbed him.”
After Marinello pinned the suspect down, others joined to make sure he wouldn’t get away while police rushed to the scene.
Police took Kleb into custody and charged him with robbery by sudden snatching.
Kleb was on probation for armed robbery and burglary at the time of his arrest.
Wells Fargo released a statement that said safety is their number one priority, and they’re thankful that no one was hurt.
According to a police report, the money was returned back to the victim.
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