Open Carry thwarts Bank Robbery.....

[KeithPA]

Interesting to say the least......

http://www2.vcdl.org/webapps/vcdl/va...?RECID=1022854

The event that VCDL Board member Dennis O'Connor describes below happened in a SunTrust branch a couple of days ago.

SunTrust does not ban their law-abiding customers from legally carrying a firearm for self defense.

Had this been a Wachovia or a BB&T, both of which ban guns, the outcome would probably have been very different.

This event also underlines something that both Dennis and I believe - open carry, in and of itself, can be a strong deterrent to crime. Yes, I know - the criminal COULD do a preemptive strike against someone he sees carrying openly. But in practice such an event is extremely rare. The outcome described below is the usual case.

In analyzing the encounter, the only thing I can flaw Dennis with is not being aware of the significance of what has happening around him. But I have a law enforcement background and was trained to be on the lookout for certain behaviors and do so automatically.

The tellers at the bank, who are probably trained in how to handle a robbery, certainly knew what had just happened!

The other lesson is that crime almost always happens when you least expect it. In this case Dennis was busy getting some deposits taken care of and was focused on that task, something he has done for years routinely without a hitch. So when something unusual happened, his mind was a little slow switching gears.

Looking at it from a criminal's point of view, it was the perfect time for a holdup - the bank had just opened and there were few customers. (You can imagine that it would be much more difficult to rob a bank with, say, thirty people inside.)

In the end, this worked out as it usually does when a criminal finds himself face-to-face with an armed citizen - the criminal flees without a shot being fired.

In this more unusual case, Dennis's gun wasn't even touched or brandished!

Dennis's report:

On Tuesday the 26th of December I went down to the Sun Trust bank in Hopewell to complete some financial transactions. I got there just as they were opening and entered with a woman who had been waiting outside. There were three tellers in position to the left, one customer service associate at a desk to the right, and the manager was seated in his office to the rear right, so there were seven of us in the bank.

I have been banking there for years and know the tellers fairly well, who are quite used to me walking in with my holstered 1911 government model
..45 and two reserve magazines. As I was transacting business with my teller, a man came in through the front door on this warm December morning wearing a full ski mask, with only his eyes showing. He was wringing his hands and glanced furtively toward the office and then swept his eyes across the room, finally towards me and the tellers. At that, he turned and BOLTED back out the door!

The teller next to my position was the first to recognize the implications of what had just happened, and yelled for the manager who came rushing out from his office. He glanced toward me before sticking his head out the front door, looking both ways down the sidewalk, and pronouncing that the suspicious character had apparently left the area. The same teller then expressed her relief that I had been there, and mentioned that the next Sun Trust down on Route 10 (Iron Bridge Road) had just been robbed the week before.

I regret to say that I was pretty oblivious to anything but the business I was immediately conducting, and walked out thinking no more about it as a non-incident at the time. In fact, even later that evening I only mentioned it as a casual after-thought in a conversation with Philip. He urged me to write up this account of what had transpired, and I will leave it to him to dissect and analyze the facts, psychologies, probabilities and possible alternative outcomes.

FOLLOW UP

I went by the bank again today to make a deposit - same three tellers on duty. I asked them if the police were called over the ski-masked intruder. They said no, but they had all discussed the incident yesterday afternoon and agreed that it was me standing there with a gun at Sharon's window
(first one from the door) that spooked him into changing his plans, and they all thanked me again (although I didn't DO anything).

[Steve in PA]

The story smells. No one in or from the bank called the police??? I doubt that very much.

[Mike45]

Agreed, does the manager of that branch still have his or her job???

Mike45

[KeithPA]

I don't quite understand the story. To me its fishy. Figured I'd post it anyways.

[Steve in PA]

I've seen it on other boards and no one can explain why someone in the bank didn't call the police.

[TonyF]

Originally Posted by Steve in PA

I've seen it on other boards and no one can explain why someone in the bank didn't call the police.

What would they report? Nothing happened except a guy with a ski mask entered and hurriedly left. he didn't communicate with anyone, didn't demand anything and didn't display a weapon.

I too think they should have filed a report cuz it's certainly suspicious but the bottom line is no crime was commited. What would the police have done except to review the surveillance video?

[Steve in PA]

There is alot to report. How about the fact that a man with a ski mask walked into the bank, how about may this guy has tried this before....how about mayeb the police can alert other banks as to the possible threat, how about checking the bank tapes for possible clues as to what the guy was driving,.............

There is a bazillion things that should have been done but NOT calling the police is not one of them.

[Travis Bickle]

Originally Posted by Steve in PA

The story smells. No one in or from the bank called the police??? I doubt that very much.

Ummm, me smells something funny too.

[TonyF]

Originally Posted by Steve in PA

There is alot to report. How about the fact that a man with a ski mask walked into the bank, how about may this guy has tried this before....how about mayeb the police can alert other banks as to the possible threat, how about checking the bank tapes for possible clues as to what the guy was driving,.............

There is a bazillion things that should have been done but NOT calling the police is not one of them.

Understood.

But lots of *maybe's* in your statement.

You're an LEO, I'm sincerely curious about what in the way of evidence could have been collected aside from the surveillence video that tells us what we already know, that a guy wearing a ski mask entered and left?

[ChamberedRound]

Originally Posted by Steve in PA

There is alot to report. How about the fact that a man with a ski mask walked into the bank, how about may this guy has tried this before....how about mayeb the police can alert other banks as to the possible threat, how about checking the bank tapes for possible clues as to what the guy was driving,.............

There is a bazillion things that should have been done but NOT calling the police is not one of them.

Agreed. Even if there was nothing the police could do in this case, it's still useful for them to have the incident on record. Not only will it make them more aware of potential future attempts, but it provides more information to determine if it's the same person or an isolated incident.

In situations like this, more information is good, even if the information seems inane and useless. No call to the police = no information gathering = less chance this guy (if it's one person) gets caught in the future.