'Old Man Bandit' Charged with Three Robberies While Out on Compassionate Release for Prior Bank Heists

Steven Gregory Gass of Frederick, Maryland was arrested in July in connection with a trio of attempted robberies in the area. Gass already has quite the reputation for ripping off banks, with robberies in Montgomery County going back as far in 1977. Per police, he pled guilty to robbing 19 banks between 2008 and 2009 in Florida -- but was granted a compassionate release from prison in 2019 for medical reasons.

After his release, he moved back to Maryland to live with his parents ... and, apparently, got the itch again.

According to the Montgomery County Police Department, police responded to an attempted robbery on July 14, 2022.

"Officers learned that a White male, wearing a light-colored fisherman's hat, sunglasses and a large face mask entered the bank and approached a bank teller. The suspect, later identified by police as Gass, handed the teller a handwritten note, announcing the robbery," say police. "The teller walked away, and another bank employee hit the silent alarm. Gass then left the bank without receiving any money."

Police spotted Gass in the area and arrested him without incident. It was only then that they tied him to another robbery in nearby Bethesda -- a robbery with a similar MO. During that robbery, the suspect also wore a fisherman's hat and mask and used a handwritten note for his demand. He left with an undisclosed amount of money.

In addition to those two instances, Gass is also accused of robbing another bank in Baltimore County.

While searching his parents' home, "additional items of evidentiary value were recovered by Baltimore County Police and entered as evidence."