East Bay woman arrested in connection to Capitola bank holdup

CAPITOLA — Police apprehended a San Pablo woman this week who allegedly held up a 41st Avenue bank and then fled some 50 miles up the coast.

Bank officials reported at around 4 p.m. Monday that a thief had demanded money with a note passed to a teller at the business on the 1900 block of 41st Avenue. The thief reportedly wore a medical-grade mask and a light-colored hooded sweatshirt and had fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of money.

According to the Capitola Police Department, a Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office inspector in the area reported observing a person matching the thief’s description get into and drive off in an older model Porsche SUV parked near the bank. With the help of the vehicle description and a still photo of the thief captured via security video footage, neighboring law agencies were looped into the search.

San Mateo Sheriff’s Office deputies took Mary Ariel Tittle, 33, into custody near Half Moon Bay on suspicion of robbery and possession of a loaded firearm in public, according to Capitola Police Chief Andy Dally. Police said evidence of the robbery was found nearby.

Tittle remained held in the Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail and had not yet been scheduled for arraignment Wednesday.