SNOW HILL- An Ocean Pines man arrested for an armed robbery of a bank in Ocean Pines on Friday afternoon remains behind bars after a without bail after a bond hearing in Snow Hill on Monday morning.
Around 1:15 p.m. on Friday, an unknown suspect entered the BB&T Bank in Ocean Pines, displayed a black handgun and demanded money from the tellers. The suspect was described initially as an older white male wearing a blue ski mask, white shirt, light-colored blue jeans and white sneakers. The suspect retrieved an undisclosed amount of cash from one of the bank tellers and took a purse from another teller containing the employee’s car keys.
The suspect then took the bank employee’s vehicle and fled the scene before abandoning the vehicle at a nearby shopping center. Multiple law enforcement agencies including the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, a Maryland State Police K-9 unit, and the MSP helicopter Trooper 4 searched the area for the suspect to no avail. Schools in the area along with some businesses were placed on lockdown for several hours as the suspect remained at large.
Around 6:30 p.m. on Friday, after local news media reported the bank robbery, Worcester Central conducted a reverse 911 call to all residences within five miles of the bank. Shortly thereafter, the Worcester County Bureau of Investigations (WCBI) received a tip from a concerned citizen about a possible suspect. WCBI, along with the Worcester Criminal Enforcement Team, the MSP, the FBI and the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, converged on two houses in Ocean Pines in an attempt to locate the suspect, who had now been identified as Jeffrey V. Hare, 52, of Ocean Pines.
Hare was located and questioned about his whereabouts earlier in the day. Based on that interview, a search warrant was obtained for Hare’s person, his residence and his vehicle. WCBI detectives located evidence from Hare’s person, residence and vehicle that supported probable cause connecting him to the BB&T Bank earlier in the day. In addition, an eye witness was located and identified Hare as a suspect seen near the bank on Friday afternoon.
Hare was arrested and charged with armed robbery, robbery, felony theft, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, first-degree assault, theft of a motor vehicle, reckless endangerment, and malicious destruction of property over $500.
On Monday morning, Hare appeared in District Court for a bond hearing and was ordered to be held without bail. A preliminary hearing has been set for April 8.