FBI: La. attorney arrested, suspected in several bank robberies
Published 10:55 pm Saturday, April 21, 2007
Authorities have arrested a Louisiana attorney suspected of robbing at least five banks in Mississippi and one in Alabama, the FBI said Friday.
Scott Eason Meece, 31, was arrested Wednesday and charged in the March 27 robbery of a Trustmark National Bank branch in Wesson, said Mississippi FBI agent Jason Pack.
Pack said Meece was arrested Wednesday on Interstate 12 in Tangipahoa Parish after a joint investigation by the Louisiana State Police, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation and the FBI.
Pack said detectives received a tip that a person matching a surveillance photograph from a robbery at the Wesson bank was living in Hammond, La.
The tip led authorities to Meece’s home in Louisiana where investigators spotted a blue Volvo and a red Nissan, which were similar to the getaway cars used in the heists, Pack said.
“This arrest serves as an excellent example of local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies working across state lines to stop serious crimes before anyone was injured,” said Maj. Adam White of the Louisiana State Police.
Pack said Meece has only been charged with one robbery, but more charges could be filed.
Authorities have been searching for a lone gunman wanted in a series of robberies — the bank in Wesson, a bank in Laurel on Dec. 18, Copiah Bank in Terry on Jan. 5, Newton County Bank in Lake on Feb. 8, Trustmark National Bank in Tylertown on Feb. 9 and a Trustmark branch in Wesson on March 27.
Pack said Meece was brought to Mississippi where an initial court appearance was pending.