Suspect arrested in robbery of bank patron

ST. PETERSBURG — Police arrested a man Wednesday morning after a woman reported that she was robbed at knifepoint at a Fourth Street automated teller machine.

The woman told police that a man approached her at about 9:38 a.m. as she stood near the ATM at the Wells Fargo bank at 9655 Fourth St. N, police said. Armed with what appeared to be a knife, the man demanded money from the woman before fleeing the area in a silver Ford Mustang.

A short time later, detectives saw Justin Polito, 23, getting out of a Mustang in the parking lot of the El Patio Motel, 6733 Fourth St. N, police said. Polito was arrested and later identified as the robbery suspect, police said.

The arrest followed several earlier robbery attempts at a Wells Fargo ATM at 4100 Fourth St. N, authorities said.

At about 8:45 a.m., a man approached multiple ATM patrons and demanded money before leaving in a Ford Mustang.

Witnesses also identified Polito as the suspect in the earlier incidents, police said.

Polito was booked in the Pinellas County Jail on a charge of robbery with a weapon and three counts of attempted strong arm robbery. He was held on $160,000 bail.