Even the honest ones must have wondered what could have been.
At the end of another workday on Tuesday, commuters began their treks home on the Red Line subway downtown. But when a man suspected of bank robbery tried to escape by fleeing through the busy station at Chicago Avenue and State Street about 5 p.m., they found themselves watching a trail of money from the heist.
Red dye ruined his getaway — and any hopes anyone may have had when they caught a glimpse of the cash.
A dye pack designed to explode on stolen money went off in the station and led police to the suspect within minutes.
Shanice Hunter said she and the suspect got off at the Chicago Avenue stop. After she hung out by the nearby McDonald’s restaurant for a few minutes, she said she saw him again — this time dropping money as he hurried down the stairs.
“I saw him running down the stairs,” said Hunter, 34. “I saw him dropping money on the stairs. The dye had already exploded. When I saw all that dye, I put two and two together and said: ‘My God, he just robbed the bank.’ ”
A crowd of about 50 people began milling about outside the Red Line entrances in the 90 minutes that police had them blocked off following the incident, a witness said.
Near North District Officer Kelly Davis, one of the three arresting officers, was making a shoplifting arrest at a clothing store near Chicago and Michigan avenues when he heard about the robbery over his police radio.
“Man, I’m kind of close,” he said he remembered thinking. “All of a sudden my instincts took over.”
Davis ran north on Michigan Avenue to Chicago Avenue and made his way to the station, jumped through a turnstile and continued down a flight of stairs to the platform.
“I’m smelling a very strong odor,” he said. “I’m canvassing the area and (the riders) are covering their nose and mouth and stuff.”
Suddenly, Davis saw a head pop out from behind one of the platform’s pillars. The man, who was not armed, matched the description he had heard over the radio.
“That’s got to be him,” he said.
Police said the robbery took place at the North Community Bank at 800 N. State St., which was also robbed in February.
The suspect will likely be charged in connection with the robbery on Wednesday in a federal complaint, authorities said. Police said they did not know if any of the cash that fell in the station was taken by passersby.
John Vergo, 16, who regularly hangs out at the intersection, said he arrived shortly after the robbery.
“I thought, ‘Dude’s crazy to rob the bank in the middle of the afternoon,’ ” Vergo said. “(This neighborhood) is really live. There’s always people around, a lot going on.”
More Top Picks Best Therapy Swings For Special Needs
Tribune reporter Duaa Eldeib contributed.