Thomas Kerss (Nacogdoches Sheriff): Bank Burglars Captured

Thomas Kerss

     At approximately 3:30 this morning (Friday, December 24, 2010) two masked men burglarized the bank in Cushing, Texas (Nacogdoches County). It was the second time in just over a week the bank was targeted by burglars. As deputies responded to the alarm call, deputy Ben Curtis met a vehicle that matched the description of the vehicle used by suspects in the previous burglary. A high speed pursuit began when Deputy Curtis attempted to stop that vehicle along F.M. 225 just south of Cushing. Deputy Curtis chased the suspects to Douglass, at which time the suspects abandoned the vehicle (a silver Toyota P.U.) and fled on foot toward the Douglass school. As officers searched the school campus for the suspects Deputy Curtis observed a ladder leaning against one of the buildings on campus. Deputy Curtis climbed the ladder and located both suspects hiding on the roof of an adjacent building. The suspects then jumped from the roof to the ground, at which time one of the suspects (Wilburn Thacker of Alto, was taken into custody. The second suspect, later identified as Emanuel Griffin (also of Alto) fled into a wooded area west of the school.

Emanuel Griffin

Wilburn Thacker

     A staging area was established at the Douglass School and officers set a wide perimeter around the area west of F.M. 225 in Douglass. Tracking dogs from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and a DPS helicopter were summoned to assist in the search. At approximately 9:00 A.M. Emanuel Griffin was located and arrested in a densely wooded area adjacent to State Highway 21 between Douglass and Alto.

     The vehicle that had been driven by the suspects was towed to the Sheriff’s Office where a search warrant was executed on the vehicle. That search revealed burglary tools, as well as rolled coins and a teller stamp that had been stolen from the bank. Officers have also linked the Griffin suspect to the first burglary and are pursuing information that may lead to additional arrests in that case.

     We were glad to have solved these crimes and we appreciate the assistance my office received from the law enforcement community and the public. Assisting the Sheriff’s Office in this search were the following agencies: Texas Highway Patrol, Texas Rangers, Nacogdoches Police Department, Constable’s Office-Pct. 1, Alto Police Department and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Thomas Kerss, Sheriff

Nacogdoches County