The man the FBI says impersonated one of their agents and robbed a Central District business of nearly $130,000 has been arrested and charged, officials announced Friday.
Steven W. Fisher, 43, has been charged with attempted robbery, robbery, and five counts of impersonating a federal officer, according to the announcement from the Western District of Washington’s U.S. Attorney.
In a January robbery reported on by CHS at the time, investigators say Fisher claimed to be a Federal Bureau of Investigations agent investigating a suspicious transaction at 23rd and Jackson’s Red Sea Finance.
According to the SPD report on the incident, a worker at the “bank/savings and loan” was closing up for the night around 7 PM when the suspect knocked on a metal security gate, showed a badge, and said he was FBI. Once he was let in past the security gate, the phony agent told the worker he had conducted a “bad transaction” and asked to see the records for the day. “(The victim) pulled up his transaction record on the computer as S1 looked on,” the report reads.
According to prosecutors, Fisher demanded, with gun drawn, the shop owner open his safe.
A fake search warrant used in the hold-up was signed “Frank Abagnale,” a famous serial fraudster from the movie “Catch Me if You Can.” On top of the cash, police say Fisher also took Red Sea Finance’s computer equipment containing surveillance footage.
Prosecutors say Fisher went to other businesses in July and August, this time in Rainier Valley. There, he allegedly called himself “Jack Ryan,” a character from Tom Clancy novels. Police say he told the manager someone was going to rob him, and Fisher wanted to meet up to talk plans.
In September, police say Fisher showed up at another money-transmitting business and claimed again to be FBI. The manager at the Martin Luther King Jr Way S business hit a panic button. Police say Fisher’s car, storage locker and briefcase had fake federal credentials, a realistic airgun pistol with a silencer, and paperwork tying him to an earlier robbery.
One more incident has come to light since Fisher’s arrest. If anyone feels they may have been a victim, call SPD at (206) 684-5540.
Fisher was transferred from King County Jail to federal custody and will appear in Seattle’s U.S. District Court at 2:00 PM Friday.
