Milwaukee- In the state, most bank robberies still occur in metropolitan Milwaukee.

There were 76 robberies in 2006 (up from 73 in 2005) in the area that includes Milwaukee, Dodge, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties,                FBI spokeswoman Monica Shipley said.

Thirty-three of them were reported as being solved by the end of the year.

Some in the industry suspect that, with the ease of travel along freeways, a few of Wisconsin's bank robberies could have been pulled by people who have been knocking off banks in the Chicago area also.

For the second consecutive year, there was a record number of bank robberies in metro Chicago in 2006.

There were 284 in Chicago and its collar counties last year, up 18% from the previous record of 240, set in 2005.

It is a federal offense to rob a bank or credit union where deposits are federally insured, and armed robbers can be sentenced to up to 25 years in prison.