Cop turns in his son

HANOVER TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- As a deputy police chief, James Cavallo Sr. is used to busting the bad guys, but never once did he think he'd have to help bust his own son.

I told my kids when I started this job years and years ago that ‘If you got into trouble, you would face the music. I won't get you out of it. I can't,'"Cavallo said.

James Cavallo Jr., 28, was sent Thursday to Northampton County prison after his arrest on suspicion of robbing Susquehanna Bank in Hanover Township, Pa., on Tuesday.

"As soon as I saw the picture, my heart sunk," said the father, the acting police chief of Moore Township, Pa.

Police said Cavallo Jr. walked in and the handed teller a note indicating he was armed but showed no gun. The teller handed him the money, and he walked out without incident, getting away with about $6,000.

Soon after, police investigators sent out a surveillance photo to other police departments. Cavallo Sr. said the man in the photo was unmistakable. "Immediately it was clear. I knew what I had to do," he said.

After calling investigators, the chief then came with them to his son's home and showed him the surveillance photo from the bank.

That's when police said the son confessed. "He confided that he had a problem with cocaine, and that's why he did it," Cavallo Sr. said Thursday.

After the alleged robbery, his son -- who is married with five kids -- drove to Atlantic City, N.J., to buy drugs, then gambled some of the money away, police said. Police said they confiscated about $3,800 of the stolen cash from inside his home.

"I hate it, hate drugs and what it does to people," Cavallo Sr. said.

The chief said his son has been battling a cocaine addiction over the last four years. He said he hopes by turning him in, he'll finally get the help he needs. "Sometimes, it's not an easy step -- staying in jail, being away from your family -- but it's a necessary step," Cavallo Sr. said