St. Helens man indicted on bank robbery charges

Police arrest Alexander Yracheta following tip related to two-year-old bank robbery

By Darryl Swan

The South County Spotlight, Nov 12, 2009

A Columbia County grand jury indicted a local man Thursday on first-degree aggravated theft and second-degree robbery charges for the 2008 robbery of the Bank of the West in St. Helens.

St. Helens police arrested Alexander Yracheta, a St. Helens resident who lives on Sykes Road, on Tuesday on charges related to the nearly two-year-old bank robbery and lodged him in the Columbia County Jail.

Yracheta’s arraignment is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Second-degree robbery is a Measure 11 crime punishable up to 70 months in prison.

Lt. Terry Moss of the St. Helens Police Department said the arrest was made possible after a local resident came forward in October with information about Yracheta.

“This case just kind of stalled until this little piece came up,” Moss said. The new information was matched with forensic evidence collected at the crime scene and evidence gathered following the execution of search warrants on Yracheta’s person and residence, Moss said.

Typically, the FBI serves as the lead investigatory agency on bank robberies. Moss said his department conferred with the federal agency and decided to charge the case through the state courts, which in this case would carry a stiffer penalty than had the case been tried in federal court.

“We thought it would be best to handle this case locally,” he said.

Led by Sgt. Phil Edwards, investigators determined that Yracheta walked into the Bank of the West located at 465 S. Columbia River Hwy., on Jan. 4, 2008 and handed a note to a teller demanding money and suggesting he was armed with a gun. He then fled the scene with less than $2,000.

Yracheta’s bail has been set at $100,000.