UTICA, Mich. – Utica police said they have arrested a 45-year-old man in connection with a bank robbery in Utica over the weekend.
Police credited a picture for helping them catch Paul Carto, but there's a strange twist to the case in that it appears no part of the robbery was planned.
The robbery happened Saturday at Chase Bank along Van Dyke in Utica. Police said Carto walked in, said he had a gun and demanded money.
Police said Carto didn't do much to conceal his identity because he didn't plan to rob the bank. He was caught because of security video. Someone thought he looked familiar and called Utica police.
"A lot of times they're not sure," Utica Police Chief Sean Coady said. "They're afraid of being wrong."
When investigators found out who he was, they confronted Carto in his office Monday. Officials said he confessed to the robbery and told them he was on his way to work when he saw the bank wasn't busy and made a detour to rob it.
Carto was charged Tuesday with armed robbery.
Detectives are still working to track down the stolen money. They're freezing some accounts and are confident the money will be recovered.