Full Notification

NP20-3998 UPDATE: 

On December 30, 2020 at 4: 05 PM, Novato Police Department officers were dispatched to the report of a robbery attempt that had just occurred at Chase Bank in the 400 block of Ignacio Blvd. Witnesses reported that a man entered the bank and demanded cash from the register while referencing that he had a firearm in his jacket. The suspect left the area before the teller could get cash from the drawer and drove away from the area in a grey Ford Fusion sedan. The suspect was wearing a black North Face jacket, Raiders hat, blue jeans, a facemask, and glasses during the robbery. Novato Police Investigators responded to Chase Bank to assist with the investigation. Over the next several days, Investigators learned that the same suspect had robbed a bank in Santa Rosa on December 28^th, 2020 and banks in Rohnert Park and in Greenbrae on December 30^th, 2020.

Over the next month, our investigators worked with detectives from Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, Central Marin Police Authority, Dublin Police and Belmont Police to share evidence and coordinate investigative efforts to identify and locate the suspect in these robberies.

On January 28, 2021, our investigators learned that the same suspect robbed a bank in Dublin, CA using the same method and wearing similar clothing as the robberies in Marin and Sonoma County. A Grey Ford Fusion was also seen leaving the area shortly after the robbery in Dublin, which matched the vehicle that was seen leaving the area in the Novato robbery.

On February 4, 2021, supplementary information lead to the identification of Aklilu Micael Asefaha, a 44-year-old man from Berkeley, California as the suspect in these robberies. The next day, Novato Police Investigators obtained an arrest warrant through the Marin County District Attorney’s Office for Aklilu Micael Asefaha for two counts of Robbery related to the Chase Bank in Novato and the Wells Fargo bank in Greenbrae. Investigators distributed information to North Bay area law enforcement agencies seeking assistance in locating Asefaha and the vehicle he was driving. That same day, NPD was notified that a Bank of America in Belmont, California had also been robbed by Asefaha. NPD Investigators further communicated with Belmont PD to coordinate additional efforts to locate Asefaha.

On February 7, 2021 at 11:30 PM, Novato Police Investigators were notified that Asefaha was located and detained on our arrest warrant by the Berkeley Police Department in Berkeley, California. Novato Police Investigators responded to Berkeley to collect evidence and interview Asefaha. Asefaha was booked at the Santa Rita jail related to the Novato and Central Marin robbery warrants. Asefaha faces additional charges in other counties related to the robberies in Sonoma County, Alameda and San Mateo.

We would like to thank all of the law enforcement agencies that assisted in this investigation, specifically Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, Belmont Police Department, Central Marin Police Authority, Dublin Police Department, Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety, Santa Rosa Police Department and the Marin County District Attorney’s Office. We work in partnership with our law enforcement community to create a safer Novato. We appreciate the assistance of our community members and witnesses who came forward to provide information that helped us solve this case.


ORIGINAL PRESS RELEASE
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On December 30, 2020, at 4:05 p.m., Novato Police Officers responded to Chase Bank, 402 Ignacio Blvd, on a report of robbery. On arrival, officers learned that a suspect entered the bank and demanded money from the bank teller. The suspect allegedly told the teller that they had a gun, yet no firearm was observed. The teller did not provide the suspect with any money and it appears the suspect became scared and fled the bank. The suspect was not identified nor located during a check of the area.

Novato Police Detectives responded to the scene. Video was obtained from Chase bank and the crime scene was processed for evidence. The suspect is described as unknown race, male or female in their 40’s or 50’s. During the robbery, the suspect wore a black colored jacket, a silver and black “Raiders” hat, a blue medical type mask, blue jeans and dark colored shoes.

It is believed the same suspect committed similar bank robberies at Bank of America in Santa Rosa, CA on December 28, 2020, at Chase Bank in Rohnert Park on December 30, 2020 at 3:30 p.m., and at Wells Fargo Bank in Greenbrae, CA on December 30, 2020 at 4:46 p.m.

A multi-agency investigation concerning these robberies involving the Novato Police Department, Santa Rosa Police Department, Rohnert Park Police Department and Central Marin Police Department is underway with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Anyone with information or suspect leads can contact the Novato Police Department at 415-897-4361. Anonymous tips can be reported to [email protected], by texting TIP NOVATO to 888-777, or by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS(8477). We would like to thank the public in advance for their assistance.