Robbery

[Avago]

With the amount of time I spend in banks it was only a matter of time before I was in one when it was held up...

I was depositing my coin into the counter in the lobby when a dude walks in the door, looks over my shoulder and says "Looks like someone's gonna have a big payday today!"

I hear something to that effect from other customers pretty frequently as people don't understand I search/deposit thousands of dollars in coin weekly and this is super normal for me. I gave him a side glance and a quick, "yep!", and didn't think much more about it.

He lurked around the lobby for a minute or two before helping himself to a coffee and heading back out the door.

Once the machine filled up, the teller manager came over to change the bags and in walks this same guy again. I thought there was something just "iffy" about the guy and just sort of ignored him while I watched the teller pull off the bags.

A minute or so later, out of the corner of my eye someone rushes behind us out the front door carrying a small red bag. Hmm, weird. And then a teller hustles over to the teller manager and me and says "I just got robbed!"

Whelp, that was about it. They locked down the bank with the few customers who were already in it and dialed up the police who responded in a few minutes. Evidently the guy showed the teller a note saying he had a gun and she passed over what little cash she had in her drawer, something like $45 bucks. What a haul!

I had to provide a witness statement to the detective and unfortunately they've yet to find the guy. Luckily for everyone involved it was non-violent and no one was hurt.

The local news ran the security footage that evening - it looks like they're still protecting our money with cameras from the 70's... black & white, and grainy, that captures just a couple frames a second. You can get cheapo cameras from this century online for a hundred bucks, but I don't run a bank so I guess that's not up to me.

Also it didn't appear that they had a silent alarm or automatically locking doors. They physically had to call the police once the guy left and lock all of the doors manually by key.

They recently installed cash dispensers for the tellers that are always locked up and they don't have access to which is why she had so little in her drawer. Kudos to the bank on that one I guess, though I'm sure any losses would be an insurance write-off anyway.

Be careful out there everyone and be aware of your surroundings. Things can go from routine to crisis in a heartbeat!

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Treasure of Victoria Peak - Grab it through Amazon!

[TxAg]

Lucky he didn’t target you after cashing in your coins! This is something I worry about as I spend a lot of time in my banks.

 

[Sleepy Holow]

Wow! Glad everyone's okay. From the thread title I thought you mighta got robbed out by your car. Seen that on TN before. Think a guy lost $1500 that way. On a separate note, I get those kinda comments at the coin counter weekly, so I wouldn't have thought anything of it either. Sometimes I'll hear two people talking back and forth, talking loud enough to try to get me involved in the conversation, but I just ignore it. Best to not have to deal with the follow-on questions. One the other day was saying, "he's done with his bag and now he's got a box!" I just finished and walked out. Glad it was the bank and not you, Avago, but that guy coulda easily waited outside for you. Maintain high situational awareness CRHers! Let this be a warning to us all...

 

[Avago]

Tx & Sleepy - Yes, I agree! Especially having a routine, going to the same banks every week, at the same time... I try to deposit into the bank's account if possible until the end of the week and withdraw it at once to avoid having to travel with cash as much. Yes, there's more paper trail but rather be safe than beaten up and cashless!

 

[GlenDronach]

I get that kind of commentary all the time too!

Drives me crazy.

I know I'm being loud with this coin machine, but I'm not over inspecting your deposit slips and getting into your business.

 

[Diver_Down]

Good to hear that everyone was safe. I've repeated it in the past but all CRH'ers will be better served with a healthy dose of paranoia. We're human and fall into routines without thinking of the consequence. Best to mix it up. Pickup/dump at different times/days. Never drive directly home. Take a different route. Be aware of who is watching, asking questions, or following you. We carry lots of cash, and people die everyday in America for lesser amounts. Don't think it won't happen to you. Those that are criminally inclined aren't necessarily interested in absconding with boxes of heavy coin. But it is an easy conclusion to draw that if someone is toting around bricks of coin, that same person likely has other items of interest to a thief.

 

[Megalodon]

Glad that you and the others escaped injury. Were you able to provide a better description than that grainy image?

 

[Avago]

Glad that you and the others escaped injury. Were you able to provide a better description than that grainy image?

I provided what I saw, which was probably a bit better than the security footage though again, I wasn't paying too much attention to the guy. I'm sure the teller got a good look, I don't think the guy even covered his face (geniuses, these thieves...)

Here's a pic, anyone know the guy?? Yeaaahh right.

 

[WG2020]

Avago, I am astounded at the amount of rolls you check. I live in Germany and am only able to check rolls once or twice a year when back visiting family - then it is usually 4-5 boxes at a time. Will be moving back to the US in the next couple of months and look forward to searching rolls on a more consistent basis. Question, how do you turn in the $200K plus a year without the bank giving you a hassle. Do you use more than one bank or do you have family or friends working at the bank. Good luck with your hunts. Walt

 

[Avago]

Avago, I am astounded at the amount of rolls you check. I live in Germany and am only able to check rolls once or twice a year when back visiting family - then it is usually 4-5 boxes at a time. Will be moving back to the US in the next couple of months and look forward to searching rolls on a more consistent basis. Question, how do you turn in the $200K plus a year without the bank giving you a hassle. Do you use more than one bank or do you have family or friends working at the bank. Good luck with your hunts. Walt

Hi WG - I have a system spreading standing weekly pickup orders between four banks and dumps across around 6-7 banks which I'm lucky enough all have free coin counting. My volume would be significantly less if I was forced to re-roll everything and didn't have access to fee-free coin counting.

 

[Sleepy Holow]

I provided what I saw, which was probably a bit better than the security footage though again, I wasn't paying too much attention to the guy. I'm sure the teller got a good look, I don't think the guy even covered his face (geniuses, these thieves...)

Here's a pic, anyone know the guy?? Yeaaahh right.

View attachment 1759702

Pretty sure I've seen that guy before...

 

[Megalodon]

Hi WG - I have a system spreading standing weekly pickup orders between four banks and dumps across around 6-7 banks which I'm lucky enough all have free coin counting. My volume would be significantly less if I was forced to re-roll everything and didn't have access to fee-free coin counting.

I do about a third of your total, but similarly, pick up orders at two banks and dump at free coin machines at 6-7 branches of two credit unions. I avoid busy times (saturdays and days before holidays) to dump if the branch uses machines with bags. I dump more at branches with free coinstars because the tellers don't have to be pulled from their windows to change a bag while a line of customers forms.

 

[Megalodon]

I worked at a liquor store when I was in college and we were told to just give them the cash. We were the only liquor store in town that was not held up in my four years there. The next closest one had all the workers shot and the bodies put in the cooler. I wondered what would happen if upon being held up, I asked to see a driver's license...

 

[dibdab]

Crazy stuff man, glad no one was hurt.

 

[Avago]

Dude got caught yesterday, was robbing the bank to fuel a meth habit (surprise.)



Evidently this was not his first heist. He served nearly five years for robbing two banks in 2012 and another 2-4 years in 1998 for robbing a supermarket. Here's the 2012 mug shot:



Unfortunate what drugs will drive a person to do.

 

[A2coins]

Heres how I see it flip a coin heads you get a chunk of cash and have to worry if and when you'll get caught tails 10 years In prison when you could have worked a few days for a good chunk of money. What are these people thinking there not

 

[fistfulladirt]

Another reason why I haven’t been to a bank in years.