"Double life alleged: teacher, bank robber; Police say suspect seen at casino" by Peter Schworm, Globe Staff | January 1, 2010
Police say the teacher, Gail Rasmussen, took at least $3,000 in total, and that 20 minutes after one of the robberies, she was spotted at Mohegan Sun Casino....
Rasmussen was arraigned Wednesday in connection to the Concord robbery, and ordered to undergo evaluation by Gamblers’ Anonymous.... Her alleged robbery spree and apparent double life shocked local police, who said she had no criminal record and had lived in the town for years without any hint of trouble.
“We had no reason to believe she was any danger to her students or the community,’’ said Michael Kurland, a police sergeant in Brookline, which has about 5,000 residents. “We’ve never had any issues with her, and she’s been around for a long time. This is definitely an eye-opener.’’
Similarly, at school she had seemed nothing but a devoted teacher. Susan Hodgson, superintendent of the Hollis-Brookline school district where Rasmussen taught English to seventh-graders, said that Rasmussen began working as a teacher’s aide in a classroom for young children with special needs a decade ago, and quickly fell in love with teaching. Inspired by her newfound profession, she went back to school, got a teaching certificate and worked her way to a full teaching position. Hodgson placed her on indefinite paid administrative leave until the charges are settled. She wrote parents, students, and staff yesterday describing the situation. A faculty member will take over her classes, she said.
Authorities began closing in on Rasmussen on Dec. 19 after the Plainfield robbery, when police contacted the Mohegan Sun nearby and discovered that a woman matching the robber’s description had appeared at the casino in a gray Honda. After the robbery in Concord the next day, Concord police, noting similarities with the other bank robberies, spoke with police in Tyngsborough and began laying plans to track down Rasmussen. On their way to Rasmussen’s home about 7 a.m. Tuesday, police spotted her driving a gray Honda and followed her to a Cumberland Farms gas station, where she prepaid for gas with $2.05 in loose change, according to a search warrant affidavit. Then they followed her to Amherst, N.H., where she appeared to take evasive action and eluded police, the affidavit stated. A few hours later, police spoke with her when she returned home, and she agreed to be interviewed at the police station. She denied being at Mohegan Sun and asked for a lawyer, according to court records....
--more--"Also see: How to Rob a Bank
Weirdness in Wellesley
The Bombing Bank Robber of Needham
Government Worker Knows Where Money Is
Cops Episodes You Will Not See
Lying Looters Large and Small: Ronnie and Clyde
I guess teacher didn't do her homework, huh?
