Man who escaped Dartmouth jail charged with robbing bank while on the lam
Ryan Taylor Wilband is also accused of dining and dashing at a restaurant
A man who escaped from a Dartmouth, N.S., jail on Monday allegedly robbed a bank and left a restaurant without paying for his lunch while he was on the lam.
Halifax Regional Police and the provincial Justice Department issued news releases on Tuesday stating that Ryan Taylor Wilband, 43, escaped from the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility 24 hours earlier, on Aug. 22.
He had been on remand at the jail for charges including robbery, theft under $5,000, committing an offence with a weapon and breaches of probation.
Police and the Justice Department asked the public to call police or 911 if they saw him.
Just a couple of hours afterward, police said he'd been located and taken back into custody by RCMP in Greenwood, N.S.
On Wednesday, RCMP released details of what he allegedly did after his escape.
Bank robbed at knifepoint
RCMP say at about 12:10 p.m. Tuesday, they received a report of an armed robbery at a bank on Central Avenue in Greenwood. Police say a man entered the bank armed with a knife and demanded cash. An employee gave him some money and he ran away.
During their investigation, officers learned that just a few minutes earlier, the same man had been at a restaurant on Pickering Lane in Greenwood, where he left without paying for the meal.
At 1:20 p.m., RCMP found and arrested the man on Laurentian Place in nearby Kingston. During their search of the man, officers found some of the cash that was obtained in the robbery.
Wilband is now facing charges of robbery, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, possession of property obtained by crime and theft under $5,000.
He has been remanded into custody once again.
The Justice Department says it is conducting an investigation into Wilband's escape from the Dartmouth jail.
Wilband was charged earlier this year in connection with two bank robberies — one in Berwick on May 5 and one in Greenwood on May 11.
Previous escape
Wilband has previously escaped from custody.
In 2003, he escaped from his escort while attending a funeral in Saint John.
He had been serving a two-year sentence for robbery, assault and fraud at a minimum security prison in Alberta, but was in Saint John on escorted leave to attend his grandmother's funeral.