Chris Stratton

"I'm not going anywhere till you tell me the plan."

Chris Stratton was a bank robber, killer, and member of The Face Cards. He appeared in Season Seven of Criminal Minds.

Background
Born on June 1, 1978, in Philadelphia, Chris was a petty criminal who targeted liquor stores, gas stations, and convenience stores. His lifelong partner was his brother Oliver, who continued to be so when Chris escalated to robbing banks. However, the two weren't skilled at the job and were caught after they attempted a heist, consequently being sentenced to two years in prison. After being released, he and Oliver met Izzy Rogers, a bank robber active in several countries and a former assassin, who perfected their techniques and reshaped them into efficient criminals. The two became her accomplices and began robbing U.S. banks as the Face Cards, although both Chris and Oliver were unaware that Izzy had another partner, named Matthew Downs, who operated behind-the-scenes.

Hit (Part 1)
Arriving in D.C., Chris enters the Colonial Liberty Bank with Izzy and Oliver. He and Oliver accidentally trigger the metal detector with their guns, to which Izzy pulls out Chris's gun and kills the investigating security guard. The trio then put on their masks and proceed to rob the bank. Chris begins taunting a female bank teller named Ling before forcing her to empty out the bank's vault. When Oliver spots a police cruiser arriving, he flees with him through a side door, only to be confronted by William LaMontagne Jr and his partner Jodi Ketelson. Oliver kills Jodi but is shot and injured by Will, forcing Chris to drag his brother back inside the bank, where he and Izzy hold everyone hostage.

Chris later receives a call with Rossi, who offers a deal to send in a medic for Oliver in exchange for the women and children. This forces Izzy to shoot a hostage to prove that the Face Cards don't play games. While waiting for a medic to arrive, Chris begins arguing with Izzy, and Chris contemplates on having Izzy killing another hostage to "make them listen". Just then, Rossi calls him again and tells him he knows his and Oliver's names. Finally, a medic, Travis Green, is sent in, but Oliver succumbs to his wounds before Green can take action. Green suddenly pulls out a gun, actually being an FBI agent, but Chris angrily shoots him dead.

On Izzy's request, Chris tells Rossi to send an armored truck and a plane (with no pilots) set for Switzerland, to which Izzy changes the location to Chad before he hangs up. Rossi later calls him again and tells him of the discovery of Izzy's real partner, and Chris asks Izzy about it. Izzy replies that should he turn against her, Oliver's death would mean nothing, convincing Chris to cut off all negotiations, save one: to talk to Will, the officer who fatally shot Oliver. The deal is turned down, which forces Chris to shoot and kill Shawn Harper, then threatening to shoot more hostages until Will walks in. Will accepts the offer and walks inside, where he finds Chris, who asks for his name. When Will states his name, Chris shoots him down.

However, Will is only injured by the shots, having worn a bulletproof vest, and he confronts him about Izzy setting him up. Unconvinced, Chris takes him to the gas mains, where Izzy had gone to, and find her setting a bomb there. Chris asks what she is doing, to which Izzy simply replies, "You'll find out soon." The two then flee with Will in tow, seconds before the bomb detonates, causing a large explosion.

Run (Part 2)
Chris somehow gets separated from Izzy and Will, but then reunites with them at a police-owned SUV that Izzy was able to access. The two decide to use Will as leverahe before driving to a hospital. There, they force a medic at gunpoint to mend Will's gunshot wounds, then Izzy kills him. The three then get back onto the road, where Izzy receives a call from Matthew. When Chris pulls over asks what her real plan is, Izzy instantly shoots him three times in the stomach, then dumps him on the street and drives away as he continuously spits out blood.

He is not mentioned nor seen for the rest of the episode, but judging by his condition the last time he was seen, it is extremely likely he bled out and died.

Modus Operandi
During the Face Card robberies, Chris wore a mask based on a King of Hearts card. When he killed, he would shoot his victims repeatedly. At first, he shot them in the head, quickly killing them, but as he inadvertently took Izzy's advice, he started aiming for non-fatal places to allow his victims to bleed out and slowly die. Chris would also force his victims to get on a phone with Rossi on the line, tell him their names, and then execute them.

Known Victims

 * Committed numerous victimless bank robberies with Oliver prior to meeting Izzy
 * 2011-2012: Six heists performed together with Izzy and Oliver
 * 2012: The Colonial Liberty Bank robbery and resultant hostage situation:
 * 30 customers and bank tellers taken hostage. They are:
 * Ling
 * Zack Hansen
 * Reese Hansen
 * Shawn Harper
 * Hannah Wakefield and her unnamed baby
 * Annie Beneville
 * Matthew Downs
 * Twenty-two unnamed others
 * Agent Travis Green
 * William LaMontagne Jr

Appearances

 * Season Seven
 * Hit
 * Run