Man attempting to rob bank gets convinced to take out a loan instead

A man walking into a bank demanding $2,000 didn’t get the deal he expected when he was arrested by police after being talked into applying for a loan.

Mark Smith, a 59-year-old California man, went into a local bank in the Santa Cruz area with the intent to steal $2,000. Smith approached a teller saying that he had a bomb in his backpack and would set it off unless he got the money.

But after hearing his demands, the bank’s manager suggested that Smith should just take out a loan instead. The manager told Smith that she’d go to get the paperwork for him to fill out.

Only instead, she dialed 911.

Police arrested Smith, charging him with attempted robbery, making criminal threats, and making a false bomb report since Smith didn’t actually have a bomb.

I kind of feel bad for Smith because he’s so obviously in over his head. I get not actually carrying a bomb but making a bomb threat to try to get money. But you can’t not carry a bomb AND get talked into taking out a loan. What did he think, they’d go, “Hmm, let’s check the credit of this gentleman. He seems like an upstanding fellow.” I don’t think his penchant for stupid fake bomb-related decisions would show up on his credit score, but I’d like to believe it’d be a factor in his loan approval. It’s hard to make loan payments when you’re busy wrapping a ticking clock in a towel and playing Bomberman to strategize for your criminal enterprise.