A man suspected of robbing banks in Southern Oregon and Northern California was arrested in Las Vegas Friday.

Thomas James West, 52, was arrested on a fugitive warrant accusing him of a series of bank robberies that started in Central Point, and continued in Yuba City and Redding, California, according to a Redding police post on social media Saturday.

The spree allegedly began at 3:47 p.m. Jan. 11, when a suspect passed a note to a teller demanding money at the People’s Bank, 1017 E. Pine St., in Central Point, according to Redding police and an earlier news report.

At 2:25 p.m. Jan. 19, the same suspect demanded money from a teller at a Sierra Central Credit Union branch in Redding. The following day, the suspect robbed a bank in Yuba City.

A common thread in the three robberies was the getaway vehicle: a blue Toyota Yaris hatchback.

On Friday, Central Point police relayed Oregon State Police information to Redding police that linked West to the Toyota, even though he wasn’t the getaway car’s registered owner.

Redding detectives learned that the Toyota hatchback was spotted in Las Vegas. They secured a warrant and worked with Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s fugitive apprehension unit to find West.

“The team located and arrested Thomas West with the getaway vehicle in less than three hours,” the Redding police Facebook post stated.

As of Monday morning, West was held without bail on the California fugitive warrant in the Clark County, Nevada, Detention Center.

Reach web editor Nick Morgan at 541-776-4471 or nmorgan@rosebudmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MTwebeditor.