A panic attack initially stopped Michael Espinosa from robbing the Citizens Bank inside a Rte. 9 Stop & Shop in Natick last week, a detective said Thursday.
Espinosa, a Framingham firefighter now on paid administrative leave, left the bank and sat in his Jeep for several minutes, Natick Police Detective Daniel Ciocca said. Then Espinosa received a call from a man demanding to be repaid part of the $35,000 Espinosa owes to 15 different people.
He returned to the bank a few minutes later, told the teller he had a gun and demanded she fill a bag with “high denomination bills,” Ciocca testified during a Framingham District Court hearing to determine if Espinosa is a danger to the public. Espinosa, he said, thanked the teller after she filled a bag with $1,000.