WILLIAMSPORT - Accused bank robber Donald Steven Guthrie has been brought back from Illinois and was arraigned Thursday on charges of allegedly robbing a teller at the First National Bank at 2 S. Main St., Hughesville, on the afternoon of Aug. 27.
Upon being shown two photo arrays of a possible suspect, all three tellers who were in the bank at the time of the 3:45 p.m. holdup were "very quick" in fingering the 38-year-old Jersey Shore area man as the one who allegedly committed the robbery.
Although the robber was wearing a zipped-up grey sweatshirt, a blue baseball cap and "aviator sunglasses," the tellers were able to identify Guthrie as the alleged bandit "mostly by his lips and chin," Hughesville Police Chief Jason Gill said in an affidavit.
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Donald Steven Guthrie
The robber walked into the bank, approached a teller and simply demanded, "Give me the money," Gill said.
A teller twice asked him if he "wanted it from his checking account or if he wanted to make a deposit," Gill said.
"Just give me the money, give me the money, please. I'm sorry," the robber demanded. The teller handed over an assortment of bills from a drawer.
Gill said the man fled with an estimated $1,800 from the bank.
Four days after the holdup, Guthrie, who is awaiting trial on charges of allegedly sending sexually explicit text messages to a teenage girl, failed to show for a required "status conference" before District Judge Dudley N. Anderson. A bench warrant was issued for his arrest.
"During the investigation, Guthrie became a suspect in the bank robbery," Gill said without elaborating.
Soon after, the bank tellers identified him from the pictures as the alleged robber.
Guthrie, of 200 Corning Ave., Porter Township, was nabbed Sept. 5 in a northern Illinois town, where he had fled with a 14-year-old female runaway from Punxsutawney. If investigators know how Guthrie, a convicted sex offender, met up with the teenager, they are not saying.
When he was captured in the small town of Mount Morris, Guthrie was wearing a grey sweatshirt that matched the one worn by the bandit, Gill said. In his pocket was a pair of "aviation sunglasses," Gill said. A blue baseball cap was found in Guthrie's car, Gill added.
Guthrie, who waived extradition, was arraigned before District Judge Jon E. Kemp on charges of robbery, theft and receiving stolen property. He was committed to the Lycoming County Prison in lieu of $350,000 bail.
