14 DAY TRIAL // 50-year-old Ronald Catt and his two children, 20-year-old son Hayden and 18-year-old daughter Abigail, are the main suspects in a bank heist extravaganza that took them from Portland, Oregon to Texas.
At least a dozen bank jobs in the two states have been attributed to the father, son and daughter trio, before they were apprehended in Houston, Texas.
The Portland-based “family robbers” were caught immediately after pulling a job at the 1st Community Credit Union in Houston, on October 1, Daily Mail writes. They are currently being investigated for five heists in Oregon and several others in Texas.
The father and son team would perform armed robberies, while the teenage daughter would wait outside, in the getaway vehicle. The family became recognizable for their use of orange traffic vests and sunglasses. Catt wore a painter's mask to disguise himself, while 20-year-old son Hayden put on a fake mustache.
Police caught a break as they found CCTV Home Depot footage of Ronald Catt's children purchasing their orange vests, and charging them on their father's debit card. He was later caught on camera buying a painter's mask.
The bank job team have been charged with robbery, and are being held in Fort Bend County Jail. Bail for Ronald and Hayden has been set at $140,000 (€110,000), while Abigail's at $100,000 (€78,000). So far, police could link them to another heist at the Comerica Bank in Houston, in August.
Neighbors dubbed Ronald Catt and his family “really solid community members.” Asked what their motivation could be for the crimes, friend of the Catts Eric Lundeen stated that they were experiencing financial difficulties, as Ronald was raising the children on his own.
“He was a single dad. I think he lost his wife and he had the responsibility to take care of his kids and I got to tell you, he was there for them,” Lundeen says, according to ABC News.