On Tuesday morning, Shane Murray Cummings went from a wanted man to a man behind bars.

Members of the Oakland County Sheriff’s Fugitive Apprehension Team (FAT) took the 37-year-old Oxford resident, who’s accused of stealing $5,110 from the main branch of Oxford Bank on Friday, July 26, into custody.

FAT located Cummings at a relative’s residence inside Oak Forest Apartments on Casemer Rd. in Orion Township, according to Oxford Village Police Chief Mike Solwold. The apartments are located west of M-24 between Clarkston and Scripps Rd.

According to Solwold, FAT members approached this relative while she was outside of the apartment. She confirmed Cummings was there, then allowed officers to go inside.

“He was sleeping. They took him into custody (without) incident,” the chief said.

Although Cummings’ relative has been “pretty cooperative” with authorities, Solwold noted she’s “really shaken up and sad about the whole thing.”

An arrest warrant was issued for Cummings on Monday. He’s charged with one felony count of bank robbery and one felony count of armed robbery. During the robbery, Cummings allegedly handed a female teller a note stating he had a gun.

When police searched Cummings belongings, Solwold said “no weapons” and “no cash” were found.

“We found a black backpack, but it just had some clothing in it,” he said.

Cummings was arraigned via video Wednesday morning in Rochester Hills 52-3 District Court. Magistrate Karen Holt set bond at $250,000, no 10 percent, according to Solwold.

Cummings has a criminal record. According to the Michigan Department of Corrections website, he’s been convicted of larceny in a building, stealing/retaining without consent a financial transaction device and malicious destruction of personal property involving damage between $1,000 and $20,000.

Solwold couldn’t be happier that Cummings is in custody.

“It feels good that we were able to get it done that fast so we can relieve a lot of folks’ tension, (both) at the bank and in town,” he said. “Whenever there’s a situation involving a possible weapon, it gets people turned upside down and it gets them scared. It’s good to get him off the street and alleviate that stress.”

The chief couldn’t say enough good things about county law enforcement for the role it played in all this, from helping at the crime scene to capturing Cummings.

“I’m very thankful for the efforts (of) and the assistance from the Oakland County Sheriff’s (Office) and the Fugitive Apprehension Team,” Solwold said. “Without it being a group effort and us working together, I can’t see it happening (as) fast (as it did). I’m very thankful that I have that resource and those connections and that cooperation.”

Solwold was especially grateful to FAT.

“This is what they do and they’re good at it,” he said. “They go out and they turn over every stone possible, from relations to friends to whatever. They’ve got a fabulous team . . . You can run, but you can’t hide. The Fugitive Apprehension Team is going to find you. You might as well (turn) yourself in . . . They’ve helped me in the past and I’ll continue to use those guys. It’s a nice (phone) number to have.”

Solwold noted the public also “played a pivotal role” in tracking down Cummings by “calling in with tips.”

“I’d like to take all the credit for (this), but I can’t,” he said.

The fact that it was such “a group effort” is what makes Solwold “proud” to work in Oxford.

“It’s a victory for all of us,” he said. “It’s a victory for Oxford as a whole and thankfully, nobody got injured in the process.”

The robbery

According to the village police report, Cummings entered Oxford Bank’s 60 S. Washington St. branch at approximately 12:16 p.m. and handed a female teller a note that read, “I want 100’s, 50’s, 20’s. I have a gun.”

Although the teller “never saw a gun,” she complied with Cummings’ orders and stuffed the money into a black backpack that he had placed on the counter, the report stated.

Before he left the bank, the report stated Cummings “snatched the note off the counter” and took it with him.

Cummings was reported to have left the scene on foot, headed in a northeast direction.

Following the robbery, officers from both the village police department and Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, including the K-9 unit, searched the area, but were unable to locate the suspect.

They later found out why, thanks to an anonymous tip. According to police, Cummings used a local taxi service to take him to and from the scene of the crime.

Police interviewed the taxi driver and he indicated that just prior to the bank robbery, he had picked up Cummings inside Parkhurst Estates and drove him to the public parking lot behind the Oxford 7 Theater.

According to the taxi driver, Cummings told him that his mother worked at the theater and he needed to borrow some money from her. After arriving, Cummings exited the taxi, but then returned to grab his backpack, the report stated. When the driver asked why he needed a backpack to borrow money, Cummings reportedly said, “Because she also has clothes for me.”

The taxi driver told police he lost sight of Cummings after he walked between the movie theater and bank. He recalled the suspect was gone for about 13 to 15 minutes. After returning, Cummings told the driver to take him to the Red Roof Inn in Orion Township, but then changed his mind multiple times and ended up being dropped off on the side of Orchard Lake Rd., just west of Woodward Ave.

Police said Cummings paid the driver a total of $200 using one $100 bill and two $50 bills.

After the robbery, Cummings’ face and name were recognized by another bank employee, who, according to the report, told police he had been “passing bad checks at their outside ITM (Interactive Teller Machine).”

Solwold wished to “commend” the bank teller for the way she handled the robbery.

“She did the right thing,” Solwold said. “She did exactly what we tell these guys to do. If somebody comes in, whether you see a weapon or not, give them what they want. Let them get out of there and we’ll track them down. Safety first. You can replace money, not people.”

A few words from the bank president

Oxford Bank President and CEO David Lamb was pleased to learn of Cummings’ capture.

“I think it’s great. I think law enforcement did an excellent job,” he said.

“When the (robber) is still out there, even though . . . there’s probably no (further) threat,” Lamb said it’s a source of “anxiety” for both bank employees and the community.

He believes knowing the alleged robber is now in jail will have “a good impact” on everyone as far as providing a general sense of relief.

After the robbery occurred, Lamb said the bank was in regular contact with the village police and sheriff’s office.

“They’ve been very good about giving updates and (being) super responsive,” he said. “I have nothing but high praise for all law enforcement in this.”

Lamb was also complimentary of the teller’s response to the robbery. He described her actions as a “textbook” example of the correct way to handle these types of situations.

“She did an excellent job,” he said.

Lamb said “really the whole team” at the bank “did a good job” as far as following proper protocol, which included “preserving” the crime scene and making sure staff didn’t talk to each other about what had happened, so they could provide police with “independent” accounts, as opposed to observations “influenced” by what others thought they saw.

“They (did) exactly what they were supposed to do,” he said. “It’s nice to see everything work so well, from law enforcement to our internal team. It was very gratifying.”

This is the third time a branch of Oxford Bank has been robbed since 2013. The Dryden Village branch fell victim in January 2016 and before that, the Clarkston branch was hit in October 2013.