By: Jacob Kessler
According to a Facebook post from the Seneca County Sheriff’s Office, suspected bank robber Gage Daniel Shafer Haws was released following a bond from a federal court detention hearing last week.
The post also states that the bond was very low and that it took even the FBI by surprise.
Seneca County Sheriff Stevens was contacted for the bail amount but stated they did not have that information.
According to court documents obtained through PACER, the Public Access To Court Electronic Records site, Haws was released following a $10,000.00 unsecured bond.
According to another document filed with the court on March 7th, the release terms were to include home detention through the use of location monitoring technology.
It also states that Haws may leave the location for “employment; education; religious services; medical, substance abuse, or mental health treatment; attorney visits; court appearances; court-ordered obligations; or other activities approved in advance by the pretrial services office or supervising officer.”
To find out what all of that means, contact was made with a local Bail Bonds Agency.
Mary Smith, the owner of Smith Bonds and Surety out of Toledo explained that an unsecured bond means the suspect is able to be released on their own recognizance without having to pay anything first.
If the suspect fails to appear for court when the time comes, at that time the $10,000.00 will be owed to the court.
“Logic would tell you that if they fail to appear they are not in your court, so how are you going to get the money,” said Smith.
The post made on Facebook from the Seneca County Sheriff’s Office also said that an agent with the FBI stated that the normal bond for a string of suspected bank robberies is typically pretty high.
After reaching out to the FBI field office in Lima, and being directed to the Cleveland office, a response received from the FBI is as follows. “Out of respect for the ongoing case, we will refrain from commenting at this time.”
In regard to the low bail amount, Smith explained that it depends on the situation. Where the case is handled on the local level, there are back and fourths by the prosecutors, the judge, public defenders and so on.
Most are set on a case-by-case basis when looking at it from the local level. However, she explained that the federal system is a bit different.
Smith explained that the federal court system has all but decided to eliminate corporate surety bonds and that they have been fighting this since around 2007.
This made way for more people to be released on their own through the use of unsecured bonds.
Haws is suspected of robbing four banks and attempting the robbery of another in Northwest Ohio. Court documents reveal what was stolen from the banks and the method used in the robberies.
The first bank robbed was the Premier Bank in Arlington, Ohio on December 31st, 2022. A note was used in the robbery and the suspect stole a little over $3,000.00.
On February 2nd, 2023, the Old Fort Bank in Bettsville, Ohio was robbed. This time the suspect used a black pistol and stole more than $10,000.
On February 10th, 2023, the suspect attempted a robbery on the First National Bank of Sycamore in McCutchenville, Ohio. Access to the lobby was not able to be obtained.
On February 11th, 2023, the suspect robbed the Union Bank Co. in Kalida, Ohio. Again, the suspect used a black pistol and stole more than $2,000.00.
Finally, on February 16th, 2023, the suspect robbed the State Bank and Trust Company in Delta, Ohio. A black pistol was used and more than $16,000.00 was stolen.
The document also states that Haws confessed to the robberies and the attempted robbery. It also states that the money was spent on drugs, drug debts, paying back money he owed, and lifestyle expenses.
It goes on to say that Haws explained the pistol used was a CO2 pistol and that he threw it from his window after being chased from the Delta bank.
It is important to note that these documents are made available to the public through the PACER records system.
Jacob can be reached at jacob@thevillagereporter.com