Avocados have had a lot of hype the last few years.  But maybe they're still underrated.  Because who knew they could do THIS?

A 47-year-old guy in Israel just got arrested after robbing at least two banks while ARMED with an avocado.

He painted it black, claimed it was a grenade, and it worked . . . twice.

He got about $4,500 in the first robbery, and another $3,300 in the second one.

Cops couldn't ID him from the surveillance footage, because he wore hats, glasses, and an eye patch to hide his face.

But they tracked him down by comparing the cell phone activity at each bank.  His phone was the only phone active in both places while they were being robbed.

It turns out he has a record, and spent three years in jail for a previous robbery.  It's not clear how much time he's looking at for the avocado incidents.

(Times of Israel / Daily Star)  (Here's a surveillance shot of him threatening a teller with the avocado.)