Federal agents are asking the public to help identify a man who robbed a Bank of America branch in Miami-Dade County's Westchester neighborhood last Thursday morning, fleeing with an undisclosed amount of cash after implying he had a gun. No injuries were reported in the stickup, which happened at about 11:15 a.m. at the bank's 8585 Coral Way location.
According to WPLG Local 10, the suspect walked into the branch and demanded money before slipping out with the cash. FBI officials described his most identifying feature as a distinctive haircut — the back of his head shaved completely bald, with the remaining hair styled forward over the top.
A Haircut Investigators Hope Will Crack the Case
FBI investigators believe the suspect has ties to Miami-Dade County and may be known in the area, though they have not said why. Authorities are urging anyone who recognizes him from his distinctive haircut, or who has other information, to come forward.
Officials warned residents not to approach the man if they spot him and to contact law enforcement immediately instead. Tips can be phoned in at 1-800-225-5324 or submitted anonymously through the FBI's Miami field office tip portal at tips.fbi.gov.
A Sheriff's Office Handling a Role It Hasn't Held in Decades
The case is being investigated jointly by the FBI Miami Violent Crime Fugitive Task Force and the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office, an agency only recently restored to that name. As CBS News has reported, the former Miami-Dade Police Department reverted to the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office in January 2025 under newly elected Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz, marking the first time in nearly six decades that an elected sheriff has overseen bank robbery investigations in the county.
The FBI task force has a track record of large-scale operations across South Florida, including a mid-2025 crackdown known as Operation Viper that led to 65 arrests across Miami-Dade and Broward counties, according to WLRN. The targeted branch sits along SW 24th Street in Westchester, a busy commercial stretch where property crime occasionally surfaces even though violent crime stays comparatively low, per DoorProfit. The building itself dates back to June 1964, when it opened as a Barnett Bank branch before later becoming a Bank of America financial center through banking mergers, according to US Bank Locations.
Part of a Summer Marked by Bank Stickups
The Westchester robbery happened 17 days after another daylight bank holdup in Miami-Dade, when the FBI sought tips following a July 13 robbery at a Wells Fargo branch in Miami Lakes, a case detailed in Hoodline's earlier coverage of the Miami Lakes Wells Fargo heist. It remains unclear whether the two cases are connected.
Miami-Dade has also seen a rise in so-called bank jugging, in which suspects stalk customers after they withdraw cash. An April arrest of two men accused of robbing bank patrons, leaving one elderly victim bloodied, was covered in Hoodline's report on the bank jugging arrests.
Rare Crime, High Stakes for Whoever Is Caught
Physical bank robberies have become increasingly rare nationwide, with FBI data showing violations fell to 1,362 in 2023, an 83% drop from the 1992 peak of 9,540, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Even so, the crime carries one of the highest clearance rates of any violent or property offense — law enforcement solves roughly 50% to 60% of bank robberies, per ASIS International, which also notes that about 58% of bank stickups involve a demand note rather than a visible weapon.
If caught, the suspect could face serious federal exposure. Under federal law, robbing a bank through force, violence, or intimidation is a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison, rising to 25 years if a dangerous weapon is used, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Because Bank of America and most commercial banks are FDIC-insured, the case automatically falls under federal jurisdiction alongside the local investigation.
