Officials probe bank robbery

Published 12:26 am Sunday, November 24, 2013

CHESAPEAKE — Authorities are still investigating the Friday morning robbery of the City National Bank in Chesapeake.

An undetermined amount of cash was stolen at gunpoint from the bank on Rockwood Avenue, the second time in recent months, according to Lawrence County Sheriff’s Jeff Lawless.

The robbery happened at 10:12 a.m. Friday when a male, dressed in a black hooded sweatshirt and mask and brandishing a small caliber handgun allegedly demanded money from a teller. The suspect took the cash and fled on foot into the wooded area behind the bank.

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The suspect is described as having a medium build.

Lawless said canine units were immediately requested and the Huntington Police Department provided the dogs. Lawless said the dogs picked up a scent for a short distance but, with the wet weather conditions, the scent was lost.

City National Bank was also robbed at gunpoint in September. No one has been arrested in that case.

“The descriptions are somewhat similar to our last robbery suspect so it’s something we are certainly looking into to see if it matches up, but there is nothing confirmed on that,” Lawless said.