'Bearcat Bandit' arrested in Mocksville

Authorities say they have caught an Ohio man who they think may have robbed close to a dozen banks in North Carolina and South Carolina in the past three months.

Posted 10:30 p.m. Dec 25, 2009 — Updated 4:11 p.m. Dec 26, 2009

MOCKSVILLE, N.C. — Authorities say they have caught an Ohio man who they think may have robbed close to a dozen banks in North Carolina and South Carolina in the past three months.

Multiple media outlets reported the robber was dubbed the "Bearcat Bandit" because he wore a jacket with the logo of the University of Cincinnati athletic teams.

Police say 47-year-old Michael J. Dolphin of Loveland, Ohio, was arrested at a gas station in Mocksville after someone in a BB&T bank branch recognized him and called 911. He was being held Saturday in the Davie County jail under a $750,000 bond awaiting a Dec. 31 court appearance.

Investigators think Dolphin robbed banks in Greensboro, Mocksville, High Point, Winston-Salem, Burlington, Hickory, Statesville, Durham and Spartanburg, S.C., since October.

It wasn't immediately clear if Dolphin had an attorney.

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