Orem teen allegedly robs two banks in 20 minutes

A 16-year-old Orem teen allegedly took his mom's car and in 20 minutes robbed two banks before being caught Saturday afternoon, police say.

A robbery call came into Orem police from Central Bank, 415 N. State St., around noon, said Orem police Sgt. Craig Martinez. Police were able to get a good description of the suspect and the vehicle. Twenty minutes later, another robbery call came in at an America First Credit Union, 1356 S. Main St., with the same vehicle and suspect description.

Martinez said both robberies happened at the banks' drive-through windows, where the teen allegedly passed a note to the teller asking for money and indicating he had a weapon.

As police were investigating the robberies, "the south end of town was saturated with patrol cars," Martinez said.

An officer located the suspect's abandoned car in a residential neighborhood about six blocks away from the credit union. Martinez said the teen suspect was spotted unarmed, walking down the street a short distance from the car.

The teen was taken into custody on suspicion of armed robbery, and an undisclosed amount of money taken from both banks was recovered, Martinez said. Police also recovered a BB gun — belonging to the suspect — at another undisclosed location.

Martinez said the teen was taken to Slate Canyon Youth Detention Center in Provo and faces a minimum of two counts of armed robbery.

cimaron@sltrib.com

Twitter: @CimCity