Credit union robbery suspect blames crime on alternate personality, police say
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IDAHO FALLS — A man suspected of robbing a credit union used the money he allegedly stole to pay off a bill at another credit union — and he’s blaming it on an alternate personality.
Travis Lofthouse, 22, was arrested Monday after he tried to rob Connections Credit Union at 2265 E. 25th St., police say. He is facing one count of felony robbery and one count of felony use of a hoax destructive device.
According to court documents, Lofthouse entered the credit union around 9:30 a.m. carrying a backpack and told the branch supervisor the bag contained a bomb.
Lofthouse handed a sack to the supervisor and told her to fill it, according to documents. She placed around $24,000 in the sack and gave it back to him.
He said he had a police scanner and a remote detonator and would detonate the bomb if she called police before 9:45 a.m., court documents state.
The supervisor told investigators she “was petrified.”
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Lofthouse left the credit union, leaving behind the backpack with a bomb supposedly inside.
The Idaho Falls Police arrived with the bomb squad. They X-rayed the bag and determined it didn’t contain a bomb.
Instead, investigators found a mannequin head, Idaho Falls Police Department Sgt. Jon Johnson said.
After surveillance photos of Lofthouse were sent out to the public, ISU Credit Union called the IFPD to report a customer who resembled the person in the photos.
They said he had just come in and paid a large amount of money towards a bill. The teller noted he had a large stack of $100 bills.
ISU Credit Union identified the person as Lofthouse.
Investigators reviewed the security camera footage from ISU Credit Union and ran a records check on Lofthouse. Police arrested Lofthouse when he got home.
According to documents, Lofthouse denied any involvement in the robbery initially. He told investigators “not to touch the $18,000 cash in his car.” He reportedly told them it was his “life savings.”
Lofthouse later admitted to the robbery but blamed it on a separate personality.
Investigators found $15,000 cash, the blue knit hat he wore during the robbery, a Walmart receipt for the backpack and mannequin head he used for the fake bomb and a handwritten note about getting money from Connections Credit Union.
Lofthouse is facing up to life in prison with a minimum five years and a $50,000 fine for felony robbery and 15 years in prison and a $15,000 fine for felony use of a hoax destructive device. He is being held on a $200,000 bond.
He is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing Jan. 22.