Eugene police suspect that a man who was on "Deadliest Catch" last season committed three bank robberies.





A news release said that Joshua Tel Warner, a 23-year-old from Oakridge, may have fled to the East Coast, Canada or Mexico.

He was a “green horn” deckhand aboard the crab-fishing vessel the Wizard on “Deadliest Catch” in the 2008-2009 season, the release said.

No one from the

, which airs the show, was immediately available for comment.

Eugene police said Warner, who is 6-foot-1, weighs 185 to 195 pounds and has a tattoo on his right thigh, is suspected in the Oct. 19, 2007 robbery of a Washington Mutual branch at 2840 Willamette St. They’ve also linked him to two robberies this year of the Pacific Continental bank branch at 1450 High St. on April 3 and August 28.

It was not clear how they linked Warner to the robberies. The release said he knows he is wanted by police.

They said another man was with him in the most recent robbery. A warrant is being sought for that man’s arrest. He has not yet been publicly identified.

Warner was known for his confrontations with other crew members and the captain on the show. Capt. Keith Colburn is from Redmond Wash., and the ship, which dates to World War II, was converted into a fishing vessel in 1978.

Before working in Alaska, Warner fished for Dungeness crab on the Oregon Coast and was a fighter, the news release said.

Anyone with information about this case should call Detective Jeff Donaca of the Eugene Oregon Police Department at 541-682-5193.