A lone male gunman eluded Issaquah Police Feb. 4 following a brazen daylight bank robbery near Northwest Gilman Boulevard.
Police say the suspect entered the local Bank of Washington branch on 1250 NW Mall St. at around 2 p.m. and walked up to a teller’s window when he displayed a black hand gun and verbally demanded the cash.
The suspect is described as a 20-30 year old white male, six feet tall and estimated to weigh 190 pounds. He was last seen wearing a dark hooded jacket, blue jeans and a dark-colored baseball cap with sunglasses resting on the brim. He was also carrying a dark-colored backpack at the time.
“He was very calm,” said Issaquah Police Detective Sgt. Bob Porter.
“He walked in and walked out. Pretty short and sweet, I guess.”
The alleged bank robber left on foot northbound towards Northwest Gilman Boulevard. Minutes later, approximately a dozen Issaquah police officers responded to the scene, combing the bank for evidence and and circulating surveillance tape images of the suspect. No bank employees were injured during the robbery.
Porter and police Sgt. Jeff Johnson said they believed the crime marked the area’s first bank robbery this year.
“We’ve been fortunate with violent crime,” Porter said.
In 2009, a nearby WAMU branch on Northwest Gilman Blvd. was robbed and Issaquah was also hit by two bank robberies in 2008.
Immediately following the robbery, a paper flyer in the bank’s front door reads: “We apologize for the inconvenience. We are temporarily closed. Visit our Redmond or Kirkland branch for your banking business.”
A bank employee apparently later scratched out the mention of a Kirkland branch that closed last year.
One would-be depositor, Bill Hughes, sat puzzled in his truck and said it was the first time he’d seen an incident like this. When asked if he thought crime was getting worse in the area, he hesitated, then answered that the negative publicity surrounding the banking industry could be to blame.
“The banks have really jerked people around,” he said. “It’s like the 30’s when John Dillinger would rob the banks and rip up the deeds — it could be (the case here).”
Police said more information would be available as the investigation moves forward with assistance from the FBI.
Police are encouraging residents to provide any information that may be helpful to the bank robbery investigation by contacting the Seattle FBI office at (206) 622-0460 or by email at Seattle.fbi@ic.fbi.gov.
