Payson Roundup

Police say a 50-year-old bank courier who claimed he was robbed at gunpoint, actually made the whole thing up because he thought he had lost a bag.

Solomon Rachmin of Phoenix was arrested on charges of false reporting to law enforcement on Monday, said Payson Police Det. Matt Van Camp.

Rachmin, who works for Beavax, an independent bank courier service in the Valley, originally told police that on Oct. 23 two vehicles forced him off Highway 87 in the 1200 block of South Beeline Highway.

Once stopped, Rachmin said subjects at gunpoint took a Bank of America courier bag, Van Camp said. The bag was filled with paperwork, but no money.

The only problem with Rachmin’s story — the reportedly stolen bag was sitting in the Bank of America parking lot at 213 S. Beeline Highway the whole time.

According to police, after Rachmin made his pickup at Bank of America, he forgot to close the side door on the van. Van Camp believes when Rachmin drove out of the parking lot, the courier bag fell out, landing in the middle of the parking lot.

Rachmin, unaware of the open door, continued out of town to the Valley. However, upon reaching Rye, Rachmin realized the door was open, pulled over and discovered a bag was missing, Van Camp said. Around 8:30 p.m., Rachmin called police to report he had been held up to disguise the fact he had lost the bag, Van Camp said.

Shortly after Rachmin called, police went to the bank and found the bag sitting unopened by the front door. Van Camp interviewed three people on scene who said they had discovered the bag in the parking lot and placed it near the bank’s front door.

“Honest citizenry solved this crime,” Van Camp