Stupid criminal of the week: the call-ahead bank robber

Meet 27-year-old Albert Bailey of Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Maybe Albert Bailey was pressed for time.  Maybe his obsessive-compulsive disorder kicked in and he felt an overwhelming need to make sure everything was in order.  Right now authorities aren't saying.  What we do know is that Bailey is possibly the first bank robber in the history of crime to phone ahead and instruct his target to have the money ready for him.

The police were waiting for him, and he was arrested along with his 16-year-old accomplice--but not before the dye pack exploded.  Connecticut Police Sgt. James Perez said that he classifies the two suspects as "not too bright."  Albert Bailey was already on probation for robbing another branch of the same bank several years ago.

 
This story reminds me of Chicago local and criminal mastermind Ruben Zarate.

In March 2008 Zarate decided to rob a muffler shop on the northwest side.  He came in, waved a gun around and demanded money. Some quick-thinking employee told him that only the manager could open the safe, and the manager was not there.  Zarate, being as menacing as he could, gave the employee his cell phone number and demanded that the employee call him when the manager returned.

The employees called CPD, who then called Zarate.  Zarate returned to complete his robbery, did his gun-waving routine, and got himself shot and arrested.  He's now in the Illinois Department of Corrections, eligible for parole in April 2012.

This may come as a surprise to some of you, but criminals are not usually carrying Mensa cards when we arrest them.