Daily News readers help nab bank-rob suspect

Tips from two Daily News readers led police and the FBI Thursday to capture a man wanted for robbing a North Philadelphia bank Oct. 12, authorities said.

A surveillance photo of a suspect during a robbery of Hyperion Bank at 2nd Street and Girard Avenue was featured Oct. 20 in the paper's weekly "Catch Me if You Can" feature.

The FBI soon received tips from two readers identifying the robber as Hector Martinez, 29, of Torresdale Avenue near Unruh in Tacony, said FBI spokesman Special Agent J.J. Klaver. Police said the robber had gotten away with cash after giving the teller a threatening note.

Klaver said an investigation confirmed that Martinez was the robbery suspect. He was arrested at his home Thursday morning by Philadelphia Police and FBI agents and was charged with bank robbery.

Martinez is the second suspect captured this week as a result of tips from readers of the People's Paper. On Tuesday, following a reader's call to the FBI, authorities nabbed shooting suspect Jose "Smurf" Rivera, featured in Monday's "Week's Most Wanted" column.

"Catch Me if You Can," which runs on Thursdays, spotlights bank-robbery suspects wanted by the FBI. Since its inception in June 2009, at least eight alleged bank robbers have been nabbed as a result of attentive readers' tips.