Man presents note, robs Citrus Bank

Apparently unarmed, the robber demands cash then escapes in a pickup with no license plate, police say.

By BILL VARIAN

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 20, 2000

CRYSTAL RIVER -- It was a bright, sunny day Wednesday.

But not inside the Citrus Bank on U.S. 19, where police say a man wearing sunglasses walked up to a teller during the middle of the afternoon and delivered a note.

"Give me all the cash in your top drawer," it read.

The teller complied and the man fled in a black, small pickup, possibly a Ford or Chevrolet, that had tinted windows but no license plate, said Crystal River police.

Police do not think the man was armed. He did not present a weapon.

There were no customers in the bank at time. None of the five employees in the bank at the time was physically harmed, though a victim advocate met with some of the employees, who were shaken by the incident, said Sgt. Mack Ballardof the Crystal River Police Department.

The employees declined to comment.

Ballard said the suspect, a heavy set white man about 5-feet-7, walked into the bank about 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. He had a mustache, and he was wearing a black shirt, tan shorts and a baseball cap.

The sergeant said the man walked up to a teller and delivered the note. The teller gave him what she had, which Ballard said likely was not much money, though he didn't have a specific amount.

"He took the note back and the money and left," Ballard said.

Police think he fled south on U.S. 19. The Citrus County Sheriff's Office dispatched its helicopter to search for the pickup, without success. The Sheriff's Office also alerted other law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for the truck. The alert said the truck may have a chrome rear bumper and trailer hitch, and may have a diamond shaped sticker or emblem on the back.

Because of the missing tag, Ballard said the truck may be stolen or could have been dumped somewhere after the robbery.

Ballard said the bank captured a clear picture of the suspect on its surveillance video, but he was unable to provide a copy at press time.

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