Man investigated for robbing West Deer Family Dollar charged in Middlesex bank robbery

A man being investigated for robbing a Family Dollar store in West Deer last month is accused of robbing a Butler County bank on Saturday, and police say he used proceeds from the robberies to pay rent.

The FBI charged Matthew Milliron, 39, of West Deer in connection with Saturday’s armed robbery of Northwest Bank in Middlesex Township.

He was being held in Allegheny County Jail awaiting disposition of unspecified state charges. He is scheduled for an initial court appearance on Sept. 8.

Authorities said Milliron made off with about $136,000 during the two-minute bank robbery shortly before noon.

Milliron was identified as a suspect in the bank robbery because he also was being investigated for the July 5 robbery of the Family Dollar in West Deer’s Russellton neighborhood, authorities said. He fits the description of the bank robbery suspect, the affidavit states, and the black pistols used in both robberies are similar.

A federal affidavit filed against Milliron said he contacted his landlord the day after each robbery to arrange to pay rent, which he did with $100 bills.

No charges could be found against Milliron in connection with the Family Dollar robbery. West Deer police could not be reached for comment.

The federal affidavit said that during the bank robbery, the robber approached a teller in her office and told her to “give me your money.” The teller said she thought he was joking.

The woman told investigators that the robber “pulled out a black pistol, grabbed me by the neck, put the gun in my back, shoved me in my back, (and) told me it was not a joke (and) if I kept laughing he would kill my family at my house,” the affidavit said.

The man led her to the vault, still holding her neck with the gun in her back. He initially said he wanted $100,000, but as the female tellers started loading a bag with money, he said he wanted the rest. Once the bag was full, he told the women not to come out until he left.

The robber’s movements, including entering and leaving the bank, were caught on nearby surveillance cameras, as was his use of a red sedan. The vehicle’s movements were tracked with license plate readers, the affidavit said.

The affidavit said Milliron texted his landlord a little more than two hours after the bank robbery to let her know he had $1,300 for rent, which he gave her on Monday.

The affidavit said several people, including relatives, local law enforcement and the landlord, identified Milliron as the bank robbery suspect from photos.

During an interview with police, in which the location of the bank robbery was not mentioned, Milliron placed himself near the scene of the robbery, driving a red Honda Accord, but claimed he was there to trap minnows in a creek, the affidavit said.

Authorities inspected the creek but did not find traps that Milliron said would be there. The water was too low for minnow trapping and the part of the creek Milliron claims to have been using was not accessible because the creek was diverted underground in that area, the affidavit said.