Holdups in Washington, Indiana
Reports of robberies at payday advance loan stores are flooding in this month. Just yesterday, Jan. 29, two separate payday loan stores were robbed within hours of each other in Spokane, Washington. One Check into Cash location was robbed about 1:30 in the afternoon, and another store from the same company was robbed at 5:30 p.m.
Yet another Check into Cash location was robbed the previous week, on Jan. 20. Police believe the same man robbed all three stores. In every case the man was described as in his 20s, white, 5′5″ to 5′7″ and wearing a black ski mask, black coat and blue jeans.
I guess the guy figured if he got away with it once he could do it again. Police are still seeking tips. If you live in the Spokane area and have any information call (509) 242-TIPS.
Indiana robberies
Payday advance loan stores in the Midwest are not safe either. In Indianapolis, Indiana, four payday loan stores were robbed within a week. The most recent robberies were Jan. 19, when two stores were robbed within about 45 minutes of each other.
Michael Orr, 20, was arrested in connection with the Indianapolis robberies.
During the week before those robberies two other payday loan stores were hit. The same two men are suspected of committing all four robberies as well as another robbery at an auto parts store. The police have one man in custody but are still seeking his alleged partner in crime. They are looking for suspect Eric Edwards, 23, in connection with the robberies. If you live in the Indianapolis area and have any information, call 317-262-TIPS.
Why target payday loan stores?
In the past few years there have been countless reports of holdups at payday advance loan stores. The stores are targeted because they keep large amounts of cash on hand, much like banks. Unlike banks, however, security payday loan stores isn’t quite so sophisticated.
Luckily no one was hurt in the robberies in Spokane and Indiana. In 2007, a woman in Illinois was killed during a holdup at a payday loan store. She was working alone. Security has been tightened since then. Still, if robbers are hitting up multiple payday advance loan stores in the same day, more needs to be done to prevent these robberies.
Here’s my thought on this. Our deteriorating economic system is driving more and more people towards payday loans just to make ends meet. However, with the way the economy is going, the unemployment rate is also skyrocketing. I think these thieves are part of an unemployment wave and are no longer able to obtain payday loans. So when the hard hits the hardest, they decided to make a payday loan run.
To see a slight increase in crime during a recession is actually fairly normal, by which I mean that there’s a small bump in crimes like robbery during recessions. When people get desperate, they resort to desperate measures , but that isn’t to say that we ought to put up with this sort of thing at all.
Here is my thought! It is not the dang economy, it’s trash! People are robbing these places for drug money and using the economy as an excuse. Look at these mug shots, do you think they are responsible family men who are just trying to support their family? NO! They’re trash and they have always done criminal things and they always will! I am having trouble with my money too but that doesn’t mean that I am going to go rob some place! Give me a break! Stop blaming what has already been going on in this world on the economy and wake up! We’re surrounded by idiots!