Suspected bank robbers caught
6-2By Stacey Creasy
Pilot News
WARSAW � Two men wanted in connection with a Leesburg bank robbery Tuesday are behind bars after a tip from an area farmer led police to the suspects.
Criss Ervin Duncan, 43, of Shipshewana and Ralph Douglas Berkey, 34, of Elkhart, were arrested about 10:30 p.m. Saturday night near Berkey�s home. The suspected bank robbers were taken into custody without incident.
Duncan and Berkey are expected to make their initial appearance in a Kosciusko County courtroom today. The Kosciusko County Prosecutor said Duncan and Berkey will be charged with robbing the National City Bank at gunpoint.
The men entered the bank about 10:30 a.m., armed with M-16 rifles. They were wearing combat gear and gas masks. The suspects demanded money and fled the bank in a van that was later found burning in a rural area. The robbers dumped the van and took off in a red GM pickup truck.
No one was injured during the holdup.
A short time later the men encountered Milford Town Marshal David Hobbs. One of the armed robbers allegedly opened fire on Hobbs, putting at least two bullet holes in his squad car. Hobbs returned fire, hitting the pickup truck several times.
The robbers fled and were not seen until their capture Saturday.
Investigators said a farmer in Cass County Michigan found the abandoned truck. Police were able to track the vehicle to Berkey. While police were watching the Berkey residence Saturday, the two men walked out of the home. That is when police officers decided to move in and arrest the suspects.
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