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Danville robbery suspect remains on loose
Published: July 1, 2009
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Larry Deklinski/Staff Photo A police car from Point Township blocks Jacob's Alley leading to the rear of the First National Bank, Danville, after an armed robbery Tuesday morning.
photo Courtesy Danville Police Surveillance footage shows a man, left, who robbed First National Bank (FNB), Mill Street and Route 11, Danville, at 11:17 a.m. Tuesday. The armed suspect, who remains on the loose, fled the bank with an undermined amount of money.
DANVILLE - A man dressed in rain gear and wearing a blue backpack robbed the First National Bank (FNB) during a heavy rainstorm Tuesday morning.
The armed robbery occurred at the Danville branch of FNB at Mill Street and Route 11 at 11:17 a.m.
According to police, the suspect is a male, approximately 6 feet tall with a thin build. He was wearing a parka-style, hooded jacket and blue jeans.
The man presented a handgun during the incident, but police said the caliber is currently unknown. The suspect then fled the bank on foot, taking an undetermined amount of currency.
Officers from Danville, state police and surrounding communities descended on the bank and began their search for the suspect. A K-9 team and helicopter were also summoned to the scene. Initial search efforts began in the bank's parking lot and Jacob's Alley located at the rear of the building, then expanded to nearby parking lots, streets and buildings.
Mulberry's Restaurant, located in the same block as the bank, was one of the first areas to be searched after the robbery. Carissa Eifert and Katrina Phillips, employees, were unaware of the events happening next door until bank President Richard Grafmyre came running by the front door asking about the suspect.
"He asked us if we saw a man wearing a greenish-tan raincoat and a blue backpack," Phillips said. "Then he went running up the alley."
Two minutes later, a police officer came running to the door, asking the employees if they saw anyone fitting the description that Grafmyre provided. Eifert and Phillips said they hadn't, but also told the officer that their back door on Jacob's Alley was propped open at the time. Soon after, several officers and a K-9 team searched the building, but found no one.
"That person could have easily had access and got in here," Eifert said. There's so many places you can hide. You never know; he could have a weapon."
After the search, employees of the restaurant were told not to leave the premises until they had been given the "all clear" by an officer. At 2 p.m., Phillips and Eifert stood behind police tape blocking Jacob's Alley and the bank's parking lot, still waiting to hear word if a suspect was arrested.
Inside the bank, only a few employees could be seen while officers, including a forensics technician from Montoursville, collected evidence. A sign on the front of the bank stated that, "Due to an emergency, the bank is closed." Several police cars were still parked around the bank - one with wipers still moving from a storm that had long past.
Assisting the Danville police were officers from the Montour and Northumberland County Sheriff's Department, Mahoning Township and Point Township.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Danvilce Police Sgt. William W. Wilt III at 275-2101 or detectivesgt@danvillepd.net.
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