5 Christmas holiday bank robberies at knifepoint lead to arrest in Toronto, Ontario

A man has been charged in connection with five Toronto bank robberies in a 10-day span over the Christmas holidays, the culprit in each case threatening employees with a knife before fleeing with cash.

The armed robberies took place between Dec. 20 and this past Monday, Toronto Police said in a news release on Friday. Banks targeted are located in the areas of Islington Avenue and Rexdale Boulevard, Eglinton Avenue East and Laird Drive, Eglinton Avenue West and Renforth Drive, and Royal York Road and Lawrence Avenue West.

Police say that in each robbery, a lone male culprit entered the bank, pulled out a knife and “made a demand for cash” before fleeing the scene with an undisclosed amount of money.

Hold-up Squad officers arrested a man on Thursday in the area of The Queensway and North Queen Street, police said.

Jeffrey Laviolette, 36, of no fixed address, is charged with five counts of robbery with an offensive weapon. He was scheduled to appear in Toronto court on Friday morning.

The investigation continues.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-7350 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-8477.