280-pound bodybuilder subdues bank robber

280-pound bodybuilder subdues bank robber

Todd Jewell, pictured above, stopped the would-be robber in his tracks.

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Story Published: Aug 20, 2007 at 2:06 PM PDT

Story Updated: Aug 22, 2007 at 10:48 AM PDT

By KOMO Staff

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LYNNWOOD, Wash. -- The jig is up for the bank robber who became known as the "Old School Bandit," thanks to a quick-thinking bodybuilder who happened to be in the right place at the right time.

Chadwik Asheim, the man behind the bandit's trademark bandana mask, was arrested on Friday when he tried to rob a Banner Bank branch in Lynnwood, according to authorities.

The Old School Bandit, who earned the title from the FBI for wearing a bandana over his face while robbing nine different banks in the Seattle area, did not realize that luck was not on his side.

Instead of clenching fistfuls stolen cash, he found himself gasping for air while a 280-pound amateur bodybuilder pounded him.

"I just basically dropped all my weight on my knee into his left side of his back and that's when I felt his ribs crunch," said Todd Jewell.

Todd, a Yakima native, and his wife were visiting Seattle when they noticed an employment sign in the bank's window.

"My wife and I are thinking of relocating (to) somewhere around this area, so we thought 'what the heck? We'll go and see if she can get an interview,'" he said.

But those plans quickly changed when Asheim walked in through the door wearing a hat, a pair of sunglasses and, of course, a bandana.

Todd said he smelled trouble immediately.

"I think his words were 'you've got to be kidding me. This is a bank robbery', which were exactly what my thoughts were," Shawna said.

The robbery unfolded within seconds.

"He leaped over the counter to the teller and grabbed a hold of her arm. And that's when I sprang into action," Todd said.

Todd threw Asheim to the ground and grabbed his hair from behind.

"(I) forced his head into the ground repeatedly," he said. "I think, at one point, I was using two hands and smashing his face in."

Todd said he kept going until he cracked Asheim's ribs. Then Shawna called 911.

"(There was) relief as soon a I saw the police officers come in the door," she said.

There was some relief as well for the FBI agents who have been on Asheim's trail. He reportedly hit nine different banks around the Seattle area since June.

Thanks to Todd, the notorious Old School Bandit is finally behind bars.

"Now I know why I spent all that time in the gym," Todd said with a laugh.

Asheim has been booked into the Snohomish County Jail, but will be transferred to a federal jail on Monday.

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