FBI officials said footage from surveillance cameras shows that a man appears to be responsible for two bank robberies in the span of two weeks in Chicago — one at a Bank of America on Dec. 2 at Harlem and Belmont avenues and one at a PNC bank branch on Nov. 22 in Norwood Park.
The FBI said the styles of the two robberies were similar. In both cases, the robbery was a “non-takeover,” meaning the robber carries out the crime quietly, without gaining attention from customers at the bank, according to FBI spokesman Garrett Croon.
“During a takeover, the robber has everyone’s attention. But in a non-takeover, usually only the teller knows,” Croon said. “Oftentimes, when law enforcement shows up, other people who were in the bank say they never even saw the guy.”
The FBI is asking for the public’s help locating the man. The first robbery, according to the FBI’s press office, occurred at the PNC bank branch, 6401 N. Harlem Ave., on Chicago’s northwest side. The suspect was described as a heavyset male in his 30s with a goatee, wearing a long black coat with a white hooded shirt underneath and a black winter-style hat, according to the FBI’s press office.
The man captured on surveillance cameras during the Bank of America robbery matches the suspect in the first robbery, but he was clean-shaven and wearing a tan coat with a gray hooded sweatshirt and a white shirt, according to the FBI. The Bank of America robbery, which took place about four miles away from the location of the PNC branch robbery, happened at 5:47 p.m. Dec. 2, officials said.
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During the first robbery, the man demanded money and told the teller he had a weapon, but he never showed one, according to the FBI. The man also did not produce a weapon during the Dec. 2 robbery, officials said.
The FBI Chicago office can be reached at 312-421-6700.
Natalie Hayes is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.