A second arrest has been made more than a week after police say three armed robbers forced their way into a bank on Martha's Vineyard, tied up the employees and fled the scene.
The Cape and Islands District Attorney's Office announced Saturday that Omar Johnson, 39, of Canterbury, New Hampshire, had been arrested as part of the ongoing investigation into the Nov. 17 robbery at the Rockland Trust Bank in the Vineyard Haven community of Tisbury.
The DA's office said Massachusetts State Police, Tisbury police, New Haven, Connecticut police, and the FBI took Johnson into custody after a traffic stop in New Haven around 8 p.m. Friday. Johnson is charged with masked armed robbery and conspiracy to commit armed robbery with a firearm. There was no immediate word on when Johnson would appear in court or if he had obtained an attorney.
Johnson's arrest follows the arrest of Miquel Anthonio Jones, 30, of Edgartown. Authorities say Jones was found near a gas station in Vineyard Haven driving the same car police believe the suspects got into after allegedly ditching the one they stole. Jones was arraigned last Monday on one count of accessory after the fact to wit armed robbery.
Jones's attorney says the local landscaper is a former professional soccer player from Jamaica who has no criminal history, adding that there are no allegations Jones was present at the bank on the morning of Nov. 17.
According to police and prosecutors, three unknown people rushed into the bank as employees entered to open for business that Thursday morning. The suspects were masked, gloved and armed with handguns. All three were wearing the same old man Halloween mask.
No one was hurt in the incident that sparked a massive search, including the Manuel F. Correllus Forest and a Holiday Inn in Falmouth.
At the time, District Attorney Michael O’Keefe and Tisbury Police Chief Chris Habekost had asked residents in the area to remain vigilant but said they should not be "overly alarmed," noting this was a "targeted crime" and there was no additional information that should cause "undue fear."
Authorities have not said anything about the third suspect. An investigation is ongoing by Tisbury police, state police detectives, the DA's office, and the FBI.
