At approximately 2:15 this afternoon, a man entered the Florida Credit Union on SR 200 in Ocala with a firearm and demanded money. He fled in a black and silver Mercury Grand Marquis which was located traveling southbound on I-75 just minutes after the robbery. The driver was identified as 49-year old Lawrence Parke McCleery. Deputies ran McCleery's information through a state-wide law enforcement database revealing he had a warrant out of Colombia County for embezzlement. McCleery was arrested and brought to the Marion County Sheriff's Office for questioning.

An investigation revealed McCleery was arrested in 2007 for the embezzling charge in Columbia County and while awaiting trial, fled to Mexico. He returned to the United States recently to visit his son in Gainesville. McCleery reported he asked his son for a ride to South Florida and that he planned the bank robbery to get money for gas and other expenses. McCleery was booked on charges of armed bank robbery and fleeing and attempting to elude law enforcement.

Stay tuned to TV20's Nightbeat for more on this developing story.

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