Peabody bank robbery suspect caught

PEABODY-A Rowley man was arrested Wednesday during a foot chase after he allegedly robbed the Sovereign Bank on Route 114.William Heil was arrested and charged with unarmed robbery shortly after 3 p.m. by Detective Douglas Marcus.Marcus and another detective approached the suspect outside a nearby car wash a short time after the robbery and asked to speak with him, police said. The suspect, Heil, then began running westbound on Route 114 for a short time before Marcus apprehended him, according to police.Police wouldn’t say if the suspect passed a note or verbally demanded money during the robbery.Peabody Police Det. Peter Olsen said in a statement that the amount of bank robberies typically rise during the holiday season.”Over the last week the Peabody Police Patrol division and Officer [John] Nelson of the Community Policing Division have been proactively visiting local banks to advise them of the heightened risk of robberies at this time of year and how to respond to them,” Olsen said. “The Peabody Police Department is proud of the partnerships formed with local businesses and the community and the positive outcomes of working together with them.”Police say the Sovereign Bank robbery is not connected to the robbery of an Eastern Bank in Swampscott, which occurred about four hours earlier.