FBI warns of an increase in bank robberies in December With FBI agents looking on, the two men in dark clothing went into the Arlington Wells Fargo Bank, where one pulled out a handgun and the other jumped the counter and stuffed tens of thousands of dollars into a black plastic bag. They rushed out to a waiting getaway car, only to be stopped moments later by police who were on to them. The robbery was one of 17 December bank heists last year in the D.C. and Northern Virginia area, and according to the FBI, it typifies what law enforcement officials worry is a disturbing trend. The same month that is reserved for caroling, gift giving and time with family seems to have a disproportionately high number of bank robberies. The phenomenon has been so pronounced in recent years that the FBI issued a warning to banks and local law enforcement to keep their guard up this holiday season. "It's a desperate time, and bank robbery is a desperate act," said Lindsay G. Ram, a spokeswoman for the FBI's Washington Field Office. We want people to be aware, first and foremost, and we also hope that it's a deterrent for those who might be thinking of robbing a bank. In a news release on the topic, the FBI's Washington Field Office said a quarter of all bank robberies in D.C. and Northern Virginia occurred in December in the past two years. In 2013, Ram said, 17 of the year's 72 robberies occurred in the same month as the Christmas holiday; in 2012, 10 of the year's 42 did. In each of those years, Ram said, December had the most bank robberies of any single month. Ram said the phenomenon has been true nationally, as well. From 2010 to 2013, she said, December had at least 21 percent more robberies than an average month; last year, she said, it beat the monthly average by 29 percent. Local authorities said they often see more crime around the holidays, when dusk comes earlier and more people are carrying cash or gifts that can be swiped. But those factors, they said, are more apt to explain street robberies or thefts. Why more people would rob banks is somewhat puzzling, and some police officials said the notion of people robbing to buy holiday gifts seems far-fetched. Authorities tied the New Year's Eve robbery of the Wells Fargo on South George Mason Drive in Arlington - and several others in the months before it - to an older trio. All three men - 57-year-old James Link, 64-year-old James McNeal and 60-year-old Alphonso Stoddard - have been convicted in connection with various of the bank robberies. McNeal was sentenced to just more than 15 years in prison, Link to 35 years and Stoddard to life. Authorities alleged McNeal was the getaway driver in the Wells Fargo robbery, and Link and Stoddard went into the bank. All three are appealing, court records show. Robert L. Jenkins Jr., a lawyer who represented Link, said he was "not aware that the timing of the year had anything to do with the motivation." His client, he said, was a longtime heroin user who was possibly motivated by his drug addiction, and he believed the others were, too. But Jenkins said that he agreed with the FBI's assessment that December is a particularly bad month for bank robberies - based on his two decades as a criminal defense attorney. Jenkins said the holiday season increases people's need for quick cash, and those who rob banks often encounter little resistance because tellers are trained to comply with their demands. But the robbers, he said, walk away with substantially less money than they thought they would, which leads them to rob repeatedly - further inflating the number of holiday heists. "It's not difficult to rob a bank," Jenkins said. It's difficult to get away with robbing a bank. Ram said by publicizing December bank robberies, officials hope would-be criminals will take note of the stiff penalties that come with the crime, and bank security guards and bank customers will keep on the lookout. She said that those who spot people acting strangely in banks should notify law enforcement immediately, and those who have the misfortune of being inside a bank during a robbery should pay close attention so they can offer a description to police later. Awareness, after all, only goes so far to prevent crime. Loudoun County authorities said they had three bank robberies in the Sterling area in recent weeks and they responded by increasing patrols around financial institutions. And the day after the FBI issued its warning about December bank robberies, a man wearing an oversize orange or burgundy winter coat walked into the SunTrust Bank on Kenmore Avenue in Alexandria, pulled out a handgun and demanded cash from the teller. He fled afterward and remains at-large.