MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho — Police were able to book a suspect into the Elmore County Detention Center after a Chase bank in Mountain Home was robbed at 9:15 am on August 20.
Officers were called by bank employees after the robbery. They talked with witnesses to determine what the suspects were driving and what direction they left in.
Using a description of the vehicle provided by eyewitnesses, officers located the vehicle in the 1600 block of American Legion. According to police, the driver immediately jumped out of the vehicle and surrendered, as directed by officers.
The passenger climbed into the driver's seat and drove away, fleeing onto the I-84. Police say at one point, the vehicle jumped the center median near mile marker 117 and continued to flee from officers going back towards Mountain Home.
Officers successfully stopped the suspect using a PIT maneuver to top them on the right shoulder of the highway near mile marker 104.
No civilian vehicles have been reported as damaged due to the chase, no injuries are known to have been caused by the incident.
Police say that during the chase, officers were told by bank employees that the suspect left a backpack behind which they were told contained an explosive. Officers called bomb disposal units who eventually determined the "device" to be nothing but water bottles and some clothing.
The initial driver claims that they did not know anything about the robbery plot, a claim that the primary suspect confirmed in a later interview.
The original driver has been released at this time, while the primary suspect has been detained and booked into the Elmore County Detention Center.
The cash stolen in the robbery was recovered at the arrest.
