Search for credit union robber turns up empty

By Times staff writer

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 12, 2000

PORT RICHEY -- Pasco County Sheriff's deputies went door-to-door in the Embassy Hills neighborhood Tuesday night, looking for the man who robbed a credit union.

At 5:24 p.m., a man wearing sunglasses and black paint on his face walked into the Suncoast Schools Federal Credit Union and ordered everyone to lie on the ground, said sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll.

The robber brandished a small handgun, but no shots were fired and no one was hurt, Doll said. The man made off with an undisclosed amount of money and ran into nearby woods.

A customer chased the man to the woods but lost sight of him, Doll said.

Officials tried to locate the robber with a helicopter and with a trained dog, but the animal lost the robber's scent in the woods.

"At this point, we're coming up empty handed," Doll said Tuesday night.

The robber is described as 5 feet 5 to 5 feet 9, between 145 to 160 pounds, and is 20- to 25-years old.

He was wearing a floppy hat, a red and black flannel shirt and black pants.

Anyone with information about the robbery should call the Pasco County Sheriff's Office at 800-854-2862.

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