The number of bank robberies are on the rise so far this year, possibly due to the struggling economy.

USA Today - 19 June 2008  Bank of America analysts are studying the relationship between the increase in bank robberies and the rising number of foreclosures and a high unemployment rate. The Los Angeles metro area has reported 189 bank robberies so far this year, compared with 156 during the same time period in 2007.

Robberies are also up in San Francisco, Houston, and Jackson, Miss., which already has recorded more robberies in 2008 than in all of 2007. An FBI spokesperson said that there is generally a normal fluctuation in bank robbery numbers, but it is usually not significant. Bank robberies reached an all-time high in 2001, when over 10,000 banks were victimized. The average bank robber steals around $10,000 in cash and checks.