GRAND RAPIDS (WKZO-AM) — He wasn’t the most successful bank robber the area has ever seen, but he was one of the more innovative ones.
Now, Douglas Wolthuis of Bangor has been given four and a half years in federal prison for robbing banks in Kalamazoo and Battle Creek last year.
The first robbery occurred last April at the Fifth Third Bank on Stadium Drive in Kalamazoo. He wore an outfit that included two bags and plastic tubing that ran to his face, which he claimed was a bomb.
In the second robbery, the 50-year-old walked into the Chase Bank in Fort Custer near Battle Creek wearing a hazmat suit and claiming he was carrying Anthrax.
Both threats were hoaxes.
Wolthuis was captured after the second robbery. He got $60,000 in the first robbery and $1,800 in the second. As part of his plea deal, he was ordered to return the money. In exchange, the charges for the Kalamazoo bank robbery were dropped.
