Exploding Dye Pack Ends String of Bank Robberies

A Pewaukee man accused in a string of bank robberies throughout Wisconsin didn’t make it very far in his grandmother’s car after robbing Guaranty Bank, 1405 Capitol Drive, in Pewaukee, according to a criminal complaint. 

Justin S. Burns, 22, was arrested about 15 minutes later after being pulled over by the Brookfield Police Department.

Burns was charged Friday with robbery with a threat of force in Waukesha County Circuit Court. He faces up to 10 years in prison and $50,000 in fines if convicted.

A teller at the bank contacted police at 12:14 p.m. March 13 after a man wear a mask over his face and thick gloves on his hands walked up to the counter. The woman knew the bank was being robbed when the suspect said “I would like to make a withdrawal,” according to the complaint.

The teller asked for identification and account number, but he gave her a note telling her she was being robbed and that if she did as told, no one would get hurt, the complaint states. The teller was told to not put an exploding dye pack with the money.

Still, the teller put the dye pack with $2,767 in money, as well as a bait pack of currency, the complaint states.

The man, later identified as Burns, didn’t make it very far when the dye pack exploded. A witness described watching Burns walking out of the bank when a large amount of red mist appeared into the air.

Burns peeled off his clothes, threw them in the car and pulled out of the parking lot, the complaint states. He was pulled over and taken into custody at 12:30 p.m. in Brookfield.

Burns admitted to the Pewaukee robbery, as well as bank robberies in Janesville and Slinger. He told investigators he drove his grandmother’s car to the robberies and was using the cash to purchase drugs in Milwaukee for his heroin addiction, according to the criminal complaint