Robber hits local bank
By News-Argus Staff
Published in News on December 18, 2014 1:46 PM
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The Goldsboro Police Department is searching for the man who walked into the Wells Fargo Bank at 605 N. Berkeley Blvd. at 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, yelled, "Merry Christmas (expletive)," fired at least one shot at the ceiling and robbed numerous tellers.
"We are following up on leads.We are still in the initial stages of the investigation," Sgt. Jeremy Sutton said.
Sutton said the robber got away with an undisclosed sum of money.
Police officers and bank officials escorted customers who were inside the bank at the time of the robbery to their cars after each was interviewed.
Witnesses described the gunman as a black male, 6 feet 2 inches tall.
One witness, who declined to give his name while the gunman was still on the loose, said the robbery happened fast but felt like an eternity.
"He shot up into the ceiling and told everybody to get on the ground. Some of us did, but other people didn't," he said.
The witness, a 56-yearold man, said the gunman pointed a long "semi-auto shotgun" in the face of each teller and demanded $50 and $100 bills.
"'Fifties and hundreds.' That's what he kept saying. He went to each teller with a bag and told them to 'Fill it up,'" the witness said.
He said he stayed on the ground with his head down until the bank fell silent.
"I never knew he left," the witness said. "It was only a minute or two but it felt like a long time."
No one was injured during the robbery, although some of the tellers and bank staff were visibly shaken.
The witness who described the robbery said he saw an elderly gentlemen clutching his chest at one point, but that he thought the man came out of the situation OK.
"He was lying there. I think it shook him up," he said. the tellers and bank staff were visibly shaken.
The witness who described the robbery said he saw an elderly gentlemen clutching his chest at one point, but that he thought the man came out of the situation OK.
"He was lying there. I think it shook him up," he said.