David Sotin Jr., a 40-year-old resident of St. Petersburg, Florida, has been arrested for allegedly robbing two banks in Florida this year while using a disguise, mirroring a multi-state heist spree he executed a decade prior, news.sbs.co.kr reported.
The Return of the Elderly Disguise in Florida
Authorities took Sotin into custody on October 20 following an investigation into a pair of bank robberies committed within the state. Investigators state that the suspect relied on the exact same method he utilized during a 2016 crime wave across Texas. In that earlier spree, Sotin targeted five financial institutions while wearing an elderly person mask.
Law enforcement agencies confirmed that the vehicle used in the recent Florida heists matches the automobile linked to his past offenses in Texas. At the time of the latest robberies, Sotin was reportedly serving a period of probation. That probationary status stemmed from the sentence handed down following his 2018 conviction for the Texas offenses.
A Decade-Old Precedent in Texas
The 2018 judicial proceedings established that Sotin executed five bank robberies in Texas two years prior. Throughout those 2016 incidents, he wore an elderly person mask.
Following his apprehension, conviction, and subsequent sentencing, Sotin served time in custody before transitioning to supervised release. Law enforcement officials investigating the recent Florida cases noted that the persistence of the methodology—combining disguises with the same transport vehicle—directly connected the incidents to the convicted felon’s past criminal record.
Authorities continue to process evidence recovered from the latest Florida robberies as the legal proceedings advance through the court systems.
