A motel dweller living in Wall Township is in custody as the suspect in Thursday's holdup of a Santander Bank branch in Belmar.

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Daniel Rathsmith, 46, was traced to the Roadway Motel on Route 35 by investigators in search of the getaway vehicle, according to information from the office of acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Chris Grammiccioni.

Rathsmith was placed Monmouth County Correctional Institution in Freehold, with bail set at $200,000 on a first-degree robbery charge. He was given no 10-percent payment option.

According to investigators, Rathsmith allegedly entered the branch on 10th Avenue at about 2:54 PM and slipped a note to the teller demanding cash, with a threat that

he carried a bomb. He was seen leaving in a pickup truck colored white or silver, investigators said.

A conviction would mean up to 20 years in a state prison, with a requirement to serve at least 85 percent of the sentence under New Jersey's No Early Release Act (NERA). He would also be required to undergo parole supervision for five years.

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