Bank heist inside job by 2 sisters, FBI says

Dennis Wagner The Arizona Republic Apr. 26, 2006 12:00 AM

The surveillance photo shows bank employee Candace Tooze, 23, filling a bag with cash from the vault while a robber looks on, wearing a dark coat and a fedora.

But sometimes a picture is worth more than 1,000 words: Federal agents believe the March 7 stickup in Phoenix was an inside job staged by Tooze and her sister, Cecillia Herzberg, 19, disguised as a male robber.

Both women, arrested Tuesday, face bank robbery charges in U.S. District Court. advertisement

According to federal agents, Tooze worked at the Compass Bank, 3150 S. 48th St., for nearly half a year before the holdup.

She told investigators that an unknown male had ordered her to enter the vault and remove cash from an automatic teller machine.

A second bank employee, who arrived during the heist, was forced to assist Tooze.

FBI Special Agent Deborah McCarley declined to say how much cash was taken but noted, "They cleaned out the vault."

McCarley said the second employee told detectives that the robber had a feminine voice, and agents noted on videotape that the suspect carried the bag of loot like a purse.

"The story (Tooze) had really just didn't add up," McCarley said.

Further investigation convinced authorities that Tooze used her inside knowledge of the bank's procedures and surveillance system to set up the robbery with her sister.