(From the Delaware State Police)
Delaware State Police detectives have arrested a pair of Wilmington men following the armed robberies and attempted armed robberies of three Brandywine Hundred area banks in May
The arrests took place on , Thursday, August 6, 2015 at approximately 9:30 a.m. as Christopher Tigani, 23, of Wilmington, was apprehended after he was observed by troopers running toward the entrance of the WSFS Bank, located at 2005 Concord Pike, Wilmington.
Tigani was wearing gloves and had pulled a blue scarf over his face in an apparent attempt to conceal his identity as he approached the bank. Troopers, who were patrolling the area at the time, were able to take Tigani into custody without incident before he could enter the bank. A subsequent pat down search revealed that he was armed with a loaded .45 caliber Ruger handgun.
Through further investigation, it was learned that Christopher Tigani had arrived at the bank in a Honda Accord which troopers located parked in the Fairfax subdivision, located behind the WSFS. The vehicle was being operated by Christopher Nepi, 21, of Wilmington, who was also taken into custody without incident.
Christopher Tigani and Christopher Nepi were both transported to Troop 2, Glasgow, where detectives were able to link them to several bank robberies (listed below) which had been occurring in the Brandywine Hundred area since May 14, 2105.
- May 14, 2015 at 9:18 a.m. : Artisans Bank, 3631 Silverside Road, Wilmington (Tigani only)
- June 8, 2015 at 9:30 a.m. : Artisans Bank, 3631 Silverside Road, Wilmington
- July 24, 2015 at 9:09 a.m. : WSFS Bank, 2005 Concord Pike, Wilmington
- August 4, 2015 at 9:00 a.m. : M&T Bank, 5107 Concord Pike, Wilmington (Attempt Only)
- August 6, 2015 at 9:30 a.m. : WSFS Bank, 2005 Concord Pike, Wilmington (Attempt Only)
In each incident Christopher Nepi would drive Tigani to the targeted bank and remain in the vehicle as Tigani would commit the robbery. Both suspects would then flee in the vehicle to an unknown location. There were no injuries in any of the incidents.
Tigani was charged by detectives with four counts of Robbery 1stdegree, two counts of Attempted Robbery 1st Degree, four counts of Possession of a Firearm during the Commission of a Felony, five counts of Wearing a Disguise during the Commission of a Felony, and five counts of Conspiracy 2nddegree. He was arraigned at Justice of the Peace Court 2 and committed to the Howard R. Young Correctional Institution for lack of $157,000.00 secured bail.
Nepi was charged by detectives with three counts of Robbery 1stDegree, two counts of Attempted Robbery 1st Degree, and five counts of Conspiracy 2nd degree. He was also arraigned at JP Court 2 and committed to the Howard Young Correctional Institution for lack of $110,000.00 secured bail.
