Attempted Bank Robbery Leads to Lockdown

Tools

Story Published: Sep 21, 2009 at 6:01 PM PDT

By Ryan Simms

Watch the story
YAKIMA -- An attempted bank robbery brings a Yakima neighborhood to a standstill.

Just before banking hours began, employees at the Banner Bank near 56th and Summitview got a rude awakening. A man was waiting for them inside the lobby.

"He broke in sometime before the bank employees arrived, probably during the night, and waited for them to start arriving this morning," says Yakima Police Chief Sam Granato.

Those tellers escaped to a nearby home, and before police and swat members arrived, the suspect escaped through a nearby orchard.

As a result, several nearby neighborhoods were placed on lockdown, including a preschool. Hours into the search, parents were finally allowed to take their kids home.

"I realized how serious it was when I saw them with their guns out walking around," says parent, Jessica Fadness.

By mid afternoon, the search was over, and no suspect was ever found.

The suspect is described as a black male, five-feet, eight inches tall, and weighing 180 pounds. As always, police fear if he's not caught soon, he'll learn from today's failure and become more violent the next time around.

Upload directly from your mobile device.

Learn how

YouNews

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.

On Demand

Resources and info you need to prepare for the switch to DTV.

Stay Connected