Umbrella bandit nabbed by deputies

The man who authorities say robbed the Liberty Bank, 6230 Highway in Felton last Tuesday didn’t get far.
The holdup occurred about 10:30 a.m. on Jan. 10.
Bank officials told Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputies that a man carrying an umbrella claimed he had a gun and demanded cash. Then he left on foot, carrying an umbrella and some cash from the bank.
Deputies said they were able to identify the suspect later in the day during their investigation.
Eric Sowards, 46, of Felton, was located on Ridge Road at Roberts Road in Ben Lomond late Tuesday afternoon and taken into custody, according to a Sheriff’s Office spokesman.
Sowards, who said he was a laborer, was formally charged with the bank robbery on Thursday, Jan. 12, and held in the County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bail on charges of bank robbery and resisting arrest.