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CLOUDY Temp: 40 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Saturday, December 21, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend November 20, 2002 This photo of the robber was taken by a bank surveillance camera at Washington Mutual Tuesday morning. No suspects found in two Ashland bank robberies By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune ASHLAND — Ashland police and the FBI are investigating two bank robberies that occurred within hours of each other Tuesday. Ashland police Sgt. Bob Smith said authorities don’t know if the morning robbery of Washington Mutual and the afternoon robbery of Klamath First are related. No weapon was seen in the morning robbery, but the afternoon bank robber showed a handgun to a teller. The 2:05 p.m. robbery of the Klamath First bank at the corner of Ashland Street and Walker Avenue prompted police to warn officials at nearby Walker Elementary School to safeguard students, Smith said. "We were in contact with school officials and had them hold the kids in school," he said. "We called them back about half an hour later when we were confident there was no danger and had them release the students." The all-clear signal sounded before the school’s regular dismissal time. At the intersection next to the bank, a crossing guard who didn’t give her name said she wasn’t unduly worried. She said a police volunteer works the intersection with her and she always watches out for the students. As she guided students across busy Ashland Street, a police dog from the Talent Police Department sniffed at bushes around the bank’s parking lot. A police car and crime-scene tape blocked the bank’s entrance. Smith said a lone person believed to be a man walked into the bank in the afternoon. He was wearing a full-face motorcycle helmet with a tinted eyeguard and a bulky, black winter jacket. The robber showed a black, semi-automatic handgun and demanded money, Smith said. A bank employee notified police with an alarm. The robber left through the bank’s Walker Street entrance with an undisclosed amount of cash in a brown metal wastebasket that he took from the bank, Smith said. Police didn’t identify any vehicles suspected of being involved in the crime. In the morning robbery, a white man in his 30s robbed the Washington Mutual bank at 243 E. Main St. at 11:25 a.m. A bank employee triggered an alarm that summoned police, Smith said. The robber didn’t show a weapon, but demanded money. He left with an undisclosed amount of cash, Smith said. The suspect in the morning robbery is described as having very short brown hair with some specks of gray and several days growth of facial hair. He might have brown eyes. He was wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt with a dark shirt underneath, dark blue or black jeans, and black tennis shoes with white laces. Police said a blue Honda Civic with two men inside was seen leaving the area and might be connected to the morning robbery. Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S