Police Kill Bank Robbery Suspect, Another in Custody
Search continues for third robber
By JIM IOVINO
Updated 8:25 PM EDT, Thu, Nov 20, 2008
A bank robbery suspect was shot and killed and police are still searching for one other after an apparent shootout in Montgomery County.
The incident started with the robbery of a Bank of America at about 9:15 a.m. in the 6300 block of Ten Oaks Road in the Clarksville area of Howard County. A female bank employee was shot in the hand during the robbery.
A citizen followed the three culprits' pickup truck and provided police with their location. The culprits then led police on a chase through three counties and ended up in the Greencastle Woods neighborhood in Silver Spring, Md., where they bailed out of the truck.
The apparent shootout occurred with at least one of the culprits near Ballinger and Wexhall drives, near the Briggs-Chaney auto park. Police called the incident a "running gun battle."
One suspect fired at police, who returned fire, striking the suspect. He was taken to an area hospital where he died. A SWAT team and K-9 units were called to the area to search for two men considered to be armed and dangerous.
Several schools in the area took security measures. Paint Branch High School, Greencastle Elementary School, Briggs-Chaney Middle School, Fairland Elementary School, Banneker Middle School and Burtonsville Elementary School were placed on Code Blue, which means there was an emergency near the school. Classes continued, but no one was allowed in or out of the schools.
Greencastle students were be kept inside the school until police allowed for their dismissal. Paint Branch and Banneker students were dismissed as usual except for students who live inside the search area. Those students were kept at their schools. Burtonsville, Fairland and Briggs Chaney students were dismissed as usual. Dismissed students who live outside the search area were taken to Banneker to meet their parents.
The search was relaxed at about 4 p.m. One suspect was taken into custody and the third man is not believed to be in the area anymore, police said.
The search area was bordered by Briggs Chaney Road, Old Columbia Pike and Greencastle Road. Residents in the area were told to lock their doors and stay inside, police said. Drivers were advised to avoid the area. Armed police searched all cars in the area.
Police recovered two handguns, including one from the deceased suspect.
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First Published: Nov 20, 2008 10:16 AM EDT
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