CitrusCountyNetwork.com

Friday, October 17, 2008

CRYSTAL RIVER ROBBERY SUSPECT APPREHENDED IN GAINESVILLE

Around 9 p.m. on Thursday, Gainesville Police Department officers made a traffic stop on a subject who turned out to be the primary suspect in Tuesday’s robbery of the Mercantile Bank in Crystal River.

Shannon Lee Shepardson, 36, was taken into custody without incident on an active Citrus County warrant for robbery.  Because Shepardson wore a mask during the commission of the crime, the charge of robbery where offender carried no weapon will be enhanced to a first-degree felony.

The bond on the warrant was set at $10,000.  If Shepardson fails to bond out, he’ll be transported to the Citrus County Detention Facility for incarceration.

The defendant’s 1991 Plymouth Voyager, which was used in the commission of the robbery, has been secured by GPD officials.  The Sheriff’s Office will
have it brought back to Citrus County for processing.

Wesley Erven, 44

The Brannen Bank located at 6901 W. Gulf to Lake Highway Crystal River was robbed today around 2pm today. The masked Robber approached one of three bank employees and demanded money. He did not show any weapons or even threatened that he had one.

The suspect then left the bank on foot. A sherrif’s deputy who happened to be in the area at the time the call came in saw him heading behind the bank and alerted k-9 units to the direction he was headed.

The dogs quickly picked up his sent and found discarded articles of clothing that the suspect was wearing along with his mask. They then found Wesley Erven, 44, by a pond behind James White Plumbing, located at 6833 W. Rich Street. Erven identified himself and said he was currently staying with friends in Citrus Springs.

Erven faces a charge of robbery, which will carry stiffer penalties because the defendant wore a mask during the commission of a crime.

All of the stolen cash has been recovered.