Updated 11/29
Omar Johnson, 39, of Canterbury, N.H., was arraigned in a New Haven, Conn., courtroom on a charge of being a fugitive from justice in connection with the armed robbery at the Rockland Trust Bank on Nov. 17.
Johnson was arrested Friday, Nov. 25, after members of the Massachusetts State Police, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the New Haven Police Department Criminal Intelligence Unit sought and received authorization from a judge that there was probable cause to make the arrest based on the arrest warrant issued by the Edgartown District Court clerk magistrate. Law enforcement then began looking for a white Honda CRV bearing the New Hampshire vanity plate “PAMPI,” which Johnson was believed to be operating, according to court records. The vehicle was located and stopped near the intersection of Crescent and Fournier Street, stopped, and Johnson was taken into custody without incident, the report issued by New Haven Police states.
Tisbury Police Det. Charlie Duquette was also in New Haven at the time of Johnson’s arrest, and has been working the case around the clock, Tisbury Police Lt. Bill Brigham told The Times.
It is unclear from the documents how investigators knew that Johnson could be located in New Haven.
Johnson, like Miquel A. Jones, 30, of Edgartown, is a Jamaican national, according to court records. He waived extradition, and is being held on $250,000 bail. Massachusetts has until Jan. 3, 2023, to bring him to the Bay State, which is when his next court date is scheduled in New Haven, according to the court documents.
In Massachusetts, Johnson will be charged with masked armed robbery with a firearm and conspiracy to commit armed robbery with a firearm, according to a press release issued by Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O’Keefe’s office in conjunction with Tisbury Police Chief Chris Habekost.
Meanwhile, West Tisbury town administrator Jen Rand told The Times there is no connection between the accused and the town’s health agent Omar Johnson.
Jones, 30, of Edgartown was arraigned last Monday on a charge of being an accessory after the fact. He is being held in lieu of $300,000 bail.
Further details incorporated in a Boston Globe article published Nov. 22 — details sourced from now deleted Edgartown District Court records that are no longer public — allege two men parked a car in Vineyard Haven on Nov. 17 (the day of the robbery), paid cash for ferry tickets at 9 am at the terminal, and later boarded a ferry at 9:21 am. The Globe reported that a car with similarities to the Elantra driven by Jones later dropped off another man. That man, per the Globe article, appeared to drive the car left behind by the two departed men over to the SSA terminal. The man subsequently departed, ostensibly in the car, on a 12:24 pm ferry. The ticket was allegedly paid for with a card belonging to Jones, the Globe reported.
Police told The Times at the scene on Nov. 17 that three armed suspects rushed the bank employees as they opened at 8:15 am, tied up the employees using plastic ties and duct tape, and got away with an undisclosed amount of cash. The suspects allegedly stole a teller’s SUV and ditched it at a parking lot near the Manuel F. Correllus State Forest.
According to Saturday’s press release, an active investigation is ongoing by local and State Police, as well as the FBI.
Updated to clarify that the original arrest warrant was issued in Massachusetts.
I’ve done some stupid stuff, BUT…
(ALLEGED) BANKROBBERS WITH VANITY PLATES?!
Brian– at least the vanity plate didn’t say “BNKRBR”
Sigh
“Armed robbery with a firearm?” Dept. Of Redundancy Dept.
Armed robbery means you can be armed with more then just a firearm.
You realize that “armed” is not exclusive to a firearm, correct?
Clearly he doesn’t realize that.
James– the people who supported the Jan 6 uprising seem to think you are only armed if you have a gun.
Ha.
I would not be surprised if the robber got caught by putting on his job application “ bank robber”.
Everyone please note that this person is also not Omar Johnson the reputable Vineyard contractor of long-standing.
Yeah, the article mentioned that.
Wow, you mean there’s more than 1 person in the world with the same name? Breaking news
Thanks for pointing out what is in the article.
OMAR!! Wonderful man!
And the ferries weren’t stopped, why?
Susan–the ferries weren’t stopped because that would have inconvenienced hundreds of people. Some of them perhaps on schedules to catch flights or meet appointments etc.
And exactly what would stopping the ferries have accomplished ? An hour after the robbery, the police were just starting their investigation.
The 4th amendment to the constitution protects us against unreasonable search and seizure.
I was on the 8:15 ferry that morning– it was delayed by about 1/2 hour for unknown reasons.
But I can tell you that I would not have allowed the police to search my car because of a simple bank robbery.
And by the way, on average, 10 banks are robbed every day in the U.S
Because the police don’t have the power to detain thousands of people over an incident in which no one was injured.
If you shut down the boats from the Island you also shutdown the boats to the Island.
Thousands of angry people.
Would you suggest holding people already on the boat?
Searched all the cars, without a search warrant?
Would you also have shut down the airport?
Stopped and boarded all boats?
People have had enough of being pushed around by the police.
When this robbery first occurred, it caused hysterics and garment-rending in the progressive chattering class and saber rattling. The school was on lockdown and everyone was advised to use great caution. These guys were armed and disguised and a real threat as if their first visit would be to the high school, but soon after one was caught the usual suspects tell us they were no threat to anyone.
andy– so the conservatives were not concerned about this at all ?
I can see that– especially if there were any potential threat to the safety of school children, and some guns were involved.
And once again I will thank you for telling us what the progressives said, did, and thought. I especially like how you fabricated the alleged opinion of the “progressive chattering class” on the matter before and after the arrest of the alleged getaway driver.
One of your better Pdooa “facts”
Also, I’m pretty sure confronting armed bank robbers on a crowded ferry could lead to an unpleasant outcome.
Absolutely not.
If I have a scheduled medical appointment or surgery, I can’t miss it because of the possibility.
Many appointments have been scheduled months in advance.
Ambulance transportationservice to other hospitals, etc.
To Don and Albert…the police stated the perpetrators were considered armed and dangerous, schools locked down, people inside the bank were duck taped, zip tied and had guns held to their heads. Seems like good reasons to stop and search ferries.
The logical and safest approach would be to screen people before boarding. It’s a method that’s been used for air travel since 9/11.
Jim–and Susan — the FAA set that up at a cost of billions of dollars a year in order to help insure the safety of hundreds of passengers on thousands of planes.
We are not talking about radical terrorist here. 3 guys robbed a bank– as I mentioned above that happens on average 10 times a day in the U.S.
So 30 minutes after this robbery, it is not logical to start searching everyone leaving the island.
First, that assumes the robbers were from off island. At the time , there was no evidence to that fact.
And who would do the searching ? The parking guys ? The police ? The police presumably were busy doing real police work and watching surveillance videos. Or perhaps deployed to the schools that were locked down.
Would they want to look in my luggage ? In America ? We still have at least 2 people at large here– Is there any guarantee they are not still on the island ? Should the ferry employees still be searching everyone’s cars and luggage?
And what would they be looking for ? Even the dumbest of criminals would not get on the ferry with the halloween suits and leave the guns and the money in plain sight. And lets just say that an unconstitutional search turned up a legally owned gun and a few thousand dollars– then what? is that a reason to arrest someone?
It’s a totally ridiculous over the top idea.
Schools were not placed in lockdown. They were in “Shelter in Place” which is tremendously different and should be specified to prevent the spread of misinformation and fear
Not justifying the crime..just saying I wish they went after the robber barons with the same tenacity!!
Yeah, really.
The two arrested men are described as Jamaican nationals. Are they in the US legally?
The “getaway car” driver was here legally. No information as to the second man.
They were just robbing banks Americans can’t be bothered to rob.
If the comment section of mvtimes represents the collective intelligence of Martha’s Vineyard I am so glad I left. It’s something ‘special’ to behold every week. Yikes
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