Off-duty cop arrests man who had just robbed N.J. bank at gunpoint, investigators say

A Wall Township man who robbed a local bank at gunpoint Wednesday afternoon was arrested shortly after by an off-duty police officer, authorities said.
Officers from the Wall Township Police Department were dispatched to a Bank of America branch located on State Highway 35 at 3:24 p.m. for a reported robbery, according to a statement from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.
Officers were told that a man wearing a mask, glasses, ball cap, black hoodie and gloves walked into the bank, took out a gun and stole over $5,000 in cash before fleeing the scene, the office said.
An off-duty Wall Township police officer was driving in the vicinity of the bank when he learned of the robbery and as he was approaching it, he saw a man matching the description of the suspect riding a bicycle, investigators said.
The officer followed the man, identified Thursday as 50-year-old Jeffrey L. Kniffin, to the front of his home on M Street, where he would ultimately be apprehended, officials said.
Kniffin was charged with one count of first-degree armed robbery, one count of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and one count of fourth-degree possession of hollow point bullets, the office said. He was taken to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution where he is being held until his first appearance in Monmouth County Superior Court.
Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.
Chris Sheldon may be reached at [email protected].