GRAND RAPIDS (WKZO-AM) — A robber who set off a terrorist response at a bank in Battle Creek and a bomb scare at a Kalamazoo bank will avoid trial after cutting a deal with federal prosecutors.
Douglas Wolthuis, 52, of Lawton held up the Fifth Third Bank branch in Oshtemo in April, claiming he had a bomb.
In June, he appeared in a Hazmat suit at a bank in Battle Creek, claiming he had anthrax in a jar. That touched off a multi-agency response, including activation of the Federal Hazardous Materials Response team at Fort Custer.
He pled guilty to that robbery in exchange for having the charges connected to the first bank heist dropped. He will be sentenced in March.
– John McNeill
