‘One-armed bandit’ still on the run
A man with a bandaged face and his arm in a sling is wanted in connection with two unsolved bank robberies.
Police say the man had concealed a gun in the sling, when he robbed a bank on Great North Road in Avondale, Auckland.
Avondale Police have released CCTV footage of that robbery, and another robbery of the same bank which the same man is believed to have been involved in.
The first robbery took place on Friday, December 11, 2015 at the Westforce Credit Union on Great North Road.
The offender had bandages on his face and his arm in a sling, in which he concealed a gun.
‘‘This is not your usual bank robber,’’ said Detective Senior Sergeant Marcia Murray of the Avondale Police.
‘‘But while he looks comical, he has pulled a gun out of the sling and shown it to the teller, as a mother and her son are standing right next to him.’’
The man made the teller empty the tills before fleeing the Credit Union.
Police attended but the man could not be located and despite inquiries he was not identified. The second robbery occurred at the same premises four months later on April 12.
‘‘This time round the man has his face covered with a bandanna, his hoodie is up and he’s wearing sunglasses. He’s holding a doublebarrelled sawn-off shotgun which can be seen by the teller,’’ said Murray.
‘‘This is not your usual bank robber’’ Detective Senior Sergeant Marcia Murray
The man took the money and fled down a driveway next to the building. Both incidents lasted less than a minute.
Murray said police believed the robberies were linked. Investigations had been underway for some months but no arrests had been made and police would like to hear from anyone with information.
‘‘Our CIB team has been looking into these for some time and we have exhausted a number of lines of inquiry,’’ Murray said. ‘‘We believe they are linked and we strongly believe that the person/s responsible will have told someone.
‘‘This is a person who will have suddenly had a lot of money that he didn’t have before, and family members or friends might have wondered why.’’
Anyone with any information regarding the robberies is asked to contact the Avondale CIB on 09 213 8448. Information can also be passed on anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.