Saugus man arrested for Eastern Bank robbery

SAUGUS – Police arrested a Saugus man Friday and charged him with armed robbery and larceny over $250 after police say he robbed the Eastern Bank at 605 Broadway.Anthony W. DeSantis, 33, of 399 Lincoln Ave., was arraigned on Monday in Lynn District Court and held on $500,000 surety or $50,000 cash bail.DeSantis handed a bank teller a note saying, “I have a gun. Give me all the money. No $20. Only $50 $100. Nobody will get hurt,” according to a police report filed in Lynn District Court.Police were dispatched to the bank at 4:40 p.m. after a silent alarm was tripped and were told the suspect was hiding near a home on Forest Street, which is approximately 300 yards from the bank, according to reports.?We got a call from a resident on Forest Street who observed the suspect hiding in the driveway,” said Assistant Police Chief Leonard Campanello. “A detailed description was put out and a coordinated search was begun.”Campanello said the suspect was then spotted on McLean Road and they chased him on foot.The suspect tried to flee across a brook that runs between Forest Street and McLean Road, but Campanello said he was caught and arrested without incident.?We were able to apprehend him while he was trying to cross a brook nearby,” said Campanello. “He was subsequently identified as the suspect in the robbery.”According to court records, DeSantis didn?t resist arrest, and said “It?s OK, you got me, I give up,” when officers caught him.Police didn?t find any weapons on him and according to reports, when asked if he had any weapons, DeSantis said, “No way, I would not hurt anyone, I don?t have a gun.”?He was not armed when we had him,” said Campanello. “He made the threat that he was armed.”Police brought the suspect back to Eastern Bank to be identified. The teller whom the suspected handed the note couldn?t positively identify him because he was wearing a hat and glasses, but said he was wearing the same jacket, shirt and pants as the man who robbed the bank, according to court documents.The police report states officers recovered $2,350 from his right coat pocket, which matched what bank employees said was taken. Police also found a Mastercard with DeSantis? name on it in a yard on McLean Road and someone found a brown Versace wallet in the bank parking lot that contained identification belonging to DeSantis, according to the police report.Records show police also recovered a pair of Versace sunglasses, two cell phones and several baseball cards.While no one was hurt in the robbery, Campanello said there?s always a risk when a suspect flees into residential areas.?Whenever you have a guy who is brazen enough to rob a bank, whether or not he has a weapon, and starts running around peoples? neighborhoods, you obviously have a desperate individual,” said Campanello.Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected]. You can follow him on Twitter at @MattTempesta.