Thunder Valley Casino employee helps solve California bank robberies

On February 12, Roseville Crime Stoppers presented a $500 reward to a Thunder Valley Casino employee who helped law enforcement identify the “Stuffed Shirt Bandit.”  The robber, nicknamed because of his habit of stuffing bank robbery loot into his shirt, was convicted of the June 11, 2008 robbery of River City Bank in Roseville, the June 23, 2008 robbery of Wells Fargo Bank in Lincoln, and five other northern California bank robberies.

Soon after the robbery in Lincoln, an off-duty Thunder Valley Casino employee saw surveillance footage of the suspect in the news media, and recognized the suspect as a recent visitor to the casino. The casino employee drove to work on his day off, and located surveillance video of the suspect and his vehicle, which helped identify the suspect.  Thunder Valley Casino officials provided the information to law enforcement, and Roseville Police investigators located the suspect  at a Roseville hotel. On June 26, Roseville Police investigators conducted surveillance on the hotel and arrested the suspect, Scott Stewart Singewald, 42, of Roseville, without incident.

According to a U.S. Attorney’s Office press release, on September 5, Singewald pleaded guilty before United States District Court Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to seven counts of bank robbery.  A U.S. Attorney’s Office representative said that on January 9, Singewald was sentenced to 97 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $34,237 in restitution.

Roseville Police Chief Mike Blair said, “This case was a great example of the partnership among  local and federal law enforcement agencies, Roseville Crime Stoppers, and the community.  We are indebted to Thunder Valley Casino for their outstanding cooperation in this case, to their employee who went beyond the call of duty to help identify a criminal, and to Roseville Crime Stoppers for providing the reward.” 

The casino employee’s tip lead to Singewald’s arrest and conviction on the following bank robberies:

September 1, 2007, Bank of America, 2400 N. Texas St., Fairfield
May 3, 2008, Bank of the West, 186 Main St., Woodland
May 16, 2008, Central Valley Community Bank, 1919 Howard Rd., Madera
May 24, 2008, Washington Mutual Bank, 2866 W. March Ln., Stockton
June 11, 2008, River City Bank, 3992 Douglas Blvd., Roseville
June 20, 2008, Bank of the West, 3509 El Camino Ave., Carmichael
June 23, 2008, Wells Fargo Bank, 945 Highway 65, Lincoln

The arrest resulted from the casino employee’s tip and a joint investigation by the Roseville and Lincoln Police Departments, and the Sacramento Violent Crimes Task Force, comprised of investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department.

Per Roseville Crime Stopper’s policy, the tipster remains anonymous. Anyone wanting to provide information about a Roseville-area crime may call Roseville Crime Stoppers at (916)783-7867. Roseville Crime Stoppers pays cash rewards for anonymous tips about crimes in Roseville leading to arrest.