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City centre bank robber makes bomb threat, grabs ‘thousands of pounds’ in cash
The Co-operative Bank, in Westgate, Peterborough. Photo: Peterborough ET
Tuesday, 9.10am: A bank robber who claimed he had a bomb calmly merged with crowds of Peterborough shoppers after taking thousands of pounds in an audacious raid.
The robbery took place at the Co-operative Bank, in Westgate, at just before 1pm on Saturday, February 4.
Police have said that the man, who was carrying a rucksack, walked into the bank and handed a note over to a female member of staff which claimed he had a bomb, although no device was visible.
The man, speaking in an English accent, then told staff to hurry up and hand over the money.
Police would not say exactly how much money he was given but did confirm it was thousands of pounds.
After being given the cash, the thief walked calmly out of the shop and into the nearby Beales department store, where he joined a crowd of shoppers.
It is thought he made his way out of the city centre on foot towards Park Road.
The bank was closed for the rest of the afternoon but was open for business as usual yesterday morning.
Detective Sergeant Rob Norman, from the serious crime team at Thorpe Wood Police Station, said: “This man walked into the bank and handed the note to the member of staff, only speaking to ask her to hurry up, before calmly walking out with the money.
“We know there were some other members of the public in the bank at the time who may not have been aware a robbery was taking place but may have seen the man responsible.
“I would urge them, or anyone who was in the area at the time, to consider if they saw someone matching this description. If so, they should contact police as soon as possible.”
Officers have recovered the note handed to the member of staff and it is now being subjected to forensic tests.
The man is described as white, around 5ft 8ins tall and with a thin-to-medium build.
At the time of the robbery he was wearing a black woollen hat with a white stripe around it, a green combat-type jacket with the collar up and blue denim jeans. He carried a small rucksack with a draw-string over his shoulder.
A spokeswoman for the bank said: “We take the safety and security of our staff and customers extremely seriously, and those affected by the incident have been offered our full support and counselling.
“We will continue to work with the police while they conduct their enquiries.”
Anyone with information should contact Det Sgt Norman on 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
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Comments
There are 17 comments to this article
Page 1 of 2
racer99
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 08:52 PMrogerandrew it's easy for you to sit behind a laptopcomputer but i would like to see you say that to someone, your all mouth but no trousers. Out of all the people you would be one of them running to the toilet.
Weevil
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 08:05 AM@15 A shotgun to deal with a piece of paper? Sounds a bit extreme. A thin-cut shredder would have done the trick, and would ensure that nobody else would have to see the note and undergo such a traumatic ordeal.
Hoplite46
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 10:54 PMTheres no plods because the police to citizen ratio in cambridgeshire is 1 plod to every 600 of us the national average being 1 to 350. Now with cuts taking place and no recruitment at all no wonder the crims are laughing. If this was america they would have been shot on sight by a guard or a policeman and a lot of bystanders would have been armed. What happened to the shotgun under the counter back in the old days?????
henry
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 07:25 PMThe law and order needs looking at - rob a bank in the city centre and no police about. This needs looking at.
doesitmakeadifference
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 07:00 PM@12 and 10..totally agree with you both..I put a bit of rhubarb on here at times (intentionally) but some of the moronic comments on this subject really is crass. If ever these loons find themselves in the same position they will be the first to mess their pants. Hope the lady involved makes a good recovery from what must have been a terrible ordeal.
Cupcakegirl1987
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 05:57 PMI never knew people could be so cruel ... How anyone can say the staff don't have a back bone is beyond me I would love to see how some of you would react in such a situation ... Nobody can comment unless they have been in a situation like this
poshie4life
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 12:29 PMwell said StamfordGirl1987 my thoughts exactly love to see how some of these muppets would react.
StamfordGirl1987
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 12:20 PMAh, all you keyboard warriors who find it so easy to criticise. Most banks operate a 'passive compliance' policy for ANY kind of threat. The money doesn't belong to the member of staff being threatened..and there is a possibility of others (public and staff) being put in danger too. Some banks do not have rising screensshutters due to there being insufficient space around the counter area for the compression equipment. How brave would you be when threatened by a stranger? My guess is not very.
Weevil
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 10:57 AM@3 spot on, I had no idea it was so easy to make a withdrawl. A note? Oh no! Makes one (even more) ashamed to be associated with this potty city.
Genghis Khant
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 10:51 AMoh please a bomb , gun yeah a bomb what was he going to do blow himself up if he didn't get money .
Werrington Old Git
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 09:51 AMWell he will be easy to spot an English accent in Peterborough.
Gwendoline Horseradish
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 09:29 AM@2 - I think @1 means it's laughable that it was apparently so easy to steal thousands of pounds. Surely the bank has shutters? Anyway, at least we know he had an English accent so we won't see BritKev, Ross or any of the other usual suspects commenting. The ET will take the comments down soon anyway, that's my guess.
swineshead
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 09:23 AMNo need to show backbone here. Its only money and its not yours. Its insured. So hand it over, live a long life and wait for the idiot who did it to get caught. Act as a witness. See justice done. Easy. Show backbone when your life and property, or those near and dear to you, or those where you can make a difference are threatened, then, if you can, raise hellfire and prevail. Otherwise leave well alone.
goneaway
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 09:19 AMI assume there were CCTV cameras in place so a photo identity shouldn't be a problem, right !!!
rogerandrew
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 09:08 AMno backbone some staff..should have asked to see bomb or tell person to sod off..
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