ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 16, 1996 TAG: 9603180120
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BETTY HAYDEN STAFF WRITER
Bonnie and Clyde they're not.
Kim Denise Lynn of Troutville sat down with an FBI agent Tuesday and told him her boyfriend robbed a Lynchburg bank last month.
John Philbrook Jr., 25, is being held without bond on charges connected with the Feb. 6 armed robbery of the Cooperative Savings Bank on Old Forest Road. Approximately $7,500 was taken in the robbery. At a hearing in Roanoke federal court Friday, a judge granted a request by Philbrook's attorney to have his client undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
In an affidavit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court, an FBI agent says Lynn told him that she drove Philbrook to Lynchburg on Feb. 6, where he borrowed a car from a post office employee. Philbrook, of Vinton, and Lynn are clerks at the Roanoke post office's main branch.
The couple checked into a motel when they arrived, and Philbrook told Lynn to meet him at a nearby restaurant at 4 p.m., according to the affidavit. If he didn't turn up, she was to drive back to Roanoke without him.
Lynn told the FBI that Philbrook arrived at 4:05 p.m. and told her he'd just robbed a bank. He showed her a blue lunch bag containing a large sum of money, and then described how he wore a ski mask and combat boots during the robbery, according to the affidavit.
He was upset that he had lost his sunglasses, she told the agent.
They drove back to Roanoke, stopping several times to throw away the mask, boots and other clothing, according to the affidavit.
Philbrook put the handgun inside the lunch bag and tossed them into a pond near Waterfall Lake subdivision in Roanoke County, Lynn told the FBI.
He later counted almost $7,000 and put it in a briefcase he'd just bought, according to the affidavit. She told the FBI that she saw the briefcase at his house as recently as Tuesday.
The description of Philbrook and of the robbery that she gave the FBI closely matched the statements provided by eyewitnesses, according to the affidavit.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Bondurant said the money has not been recovered, but authorities found a small handgun in the pond.
He said Lynn came forward voluntarily, and that no charges will be filed against her.
Philbrook's attorney, John Fishwick Jr., says he wants a professional to determine his client's state of mind at the time of the robbery.
"It's a sad situation, and there are some really mitigating circumstances." Philbrook likely will be held for 75 days, after which another hearing will be held to decide if he's competent to stand trial.
LENGTH: Medium: 53 linesby CNB