Spontaneous confession reported in 2011 bank robbery

BATON ROUGE - Sheriff's deputies said a man spontaneously contacted authorities and admitted to them he robbed an East Baton Rouge Parish bank in 2011.

Deputies arrested 26-year-old John Mendoza on Friday. They said Mendoza told them details only the person who robbed the bank would know.

The robbery happened at the Chase Bank on Jones Creek Road on Nov. 17, 2011. Deputies said at the time an armed man in a camouflage jacket and face mask forced a teller to put money into a plastic bag, then fled on foot. Investigators said the clothing worn by the robber made it difficult to determine their race, and the only description they had to work with was that the man was slim and around six feet tall.

Detectives said on Dec. 19 Mendoza told a deputy he committed the crime, and described planning the robbery as well as his escape routes. Detectives said the information Mendoza gave them included details only available to law enforcement, witnesses and the robber, and that Mendoza fit the physical description of the robber as well.

Deputies booked Mendoza on armed bank robbery charges. He was given a $110,000 bond.