“Man robs Wachovia bank in Olney, assaults bank employee Oct. 30”

Man robs Wachovia bank in Olney, assaults bank employee Oct. 30

Posted: 01 Nov 2010 05:55 PM PDT

Monday, Nov. 1, 2010

Montgomery police are looking for connections to two other robberies since July 2

by Nesa Nourmohammadi and Mimi Liu | Staff Writers

Montgomery police are searching for a man with a handgun who robbed a Wachovia Bank branch in Olney and assaulted a bank teller Saturday morning.

Police said a man dressed in a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans, black sunglasses and a scarf covering the lower part of his face entered the bank at 16810 Georgia Ave. before 10:30 a.m. and pointed a handgun at a teller.

The robber then struck the teller in the face with his gun before receiving an undisclosed amount of cash and fleeing the scene, police said.

The employee was treated for minor injuries and facial lacerations and released from Montgomery General Hospital in Olney, said Montgomery County Police spokesman Cpl. Dan Friz.

There were no other injuries.

The robber is described as black, 25 to 35 years old, 6 feet 2 inches to 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighing between 180 and 200 pounds.

This is the third bank robbery in Olney since July, but police have yet to connect the weekend robbery to any others.

"[Detectives] are looking into trying to connect them but haven't done so yet," Friz said.

On Sept. 2, a man approached a teller at the Sovereign Bank at 17920 Georgia Ave. and showed a gun, according to county police. Police described the gun as looking like a black revolver.

The man fled on foot after obtaining an undisclosed amount of cash. No one was injured during the robbery.

The robber was described as black, possibly in his 30s, about 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing approximately 130 pounds. His hair was in dreadlocks. He was wearing a gray shirt, a hat and sunglasses, and had a scarf covering his mouth.

Students at Olney Elementary School, located two blocks south of the bank, were placed on lockdown that same day for nearly an hour.

A man fitting a similar description robbed the same bank on July 2.

The man had long dreadlocks and was wearing sunglasses and a light gray baseball cap with a logo on the front and back. A dreadlocks wig and a baseball cap were found close to the scene of the robbery, police had said.

Montgomery police spokeswoman Angela Cruz told The Gazette in a previous interview that police believed the two bank robberies were committed by the same person.

Anyone with information pertaining to the Oct. 30 robbery is asked to contact Montgomery County Police Major Crimes Division's Robbery Section at 240-773-5100. Those wanting to remain anonymous can contact Crime Solvers of Montgomery County toll-free at 866-411-TIPS (8477). Crime Solvers will pay a cash reward of up to $1,000 to anyone providing information that leads to an arrest or indictment.

Staff Writer Terri Hogan also contributed to this report.

nnourmohammadi@gazette.net, mliu@gazette.net and thogan@gazette.net

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