A second Oak Park bank was targeted by an armed man in less than a week, this time the TCF Bank branch, located at 601 N. Harlem Ave., at 11:08 a.m. on Feb. 2.
There was an attempted bank robbery just days earlier at PNC Bank, 6621 W. North Ave., at 10:45 a.m. on Jan. 29.
The Chicago FBI has released information about both robberies, but the descriptions of the offenders in each robbery appear different.
The FBI reports that the TCF robbery was committed by a man between 5-foot-11 and 6-foot-1. He is described as a black man with a light complexion and a medium build. He wore a brown leather jacket, a black facemask and black-rimmed glasses. An estimated age was not given for the man caught on surveillance video robbing the bank.
The FBI noted that the offender used a handgun in the TCF robbery.
Oak Park spokesman David Powers said in an email that Chief LaDon Reynolds deferred questions to the Chicago FBI.
Oak Park police did put out a summary report of the robbery, noting that the robber made off with $1,300.
No additional information was given about the TCF robbery, but the FBI is offering a reward of $1,000 for any information leading to the arrest of either one of the individuals involved in the TCF or PNC bank robberies.
An FBI spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment about either of the robberies.
Oak Park police did release information about the PNC Bank robbery attempt.
The offender entered the bank’s office, told a bank employee he had a gun and demanded that they give him “all the money,” Oak Park Police Commander Roger Grivetti said.
The employee left the office to comply with the demand, and the offender exited the building. He headed eastbound on West North Avenue, southbound on Columbian Avenue and then eastbound in the alley to the south of West North Avenue.
No loss was reported.
The offender was described as a black man with a dark complexion, 5-foot-7 to 5-foot-8, approximately 40 years old with a thin jaw line, a thin beard with gray hair, a slim build, brown eyes, and wearing transitional glasses, a black and gray skull cap, a surgical mask, a gray North Face jacket, a blue hooded sweatshirt, tan boots and blue jeans.
Grivetti said in a telephone interview that police detained two people during the investigation in the PNC robbery, but neither was determined to be the offender.
The Chicago FBI Bank Robbery Task Force investigated the incident, Grivetti said.
Robbery
A Chicago resident was robbed at gunpoint at a business in the 100 block of Chicago Avenue, at 5:14 a.m. on Feb. 1.
The offender entered the business through a rear door, displayed a small silver and black handgun and demanded the victim’s property. The offender then exited the business through the rear door and continued northbound through the alley between Austin and Humphrey. No loss was reported.
The offender was described as a black man in his 30s, 6-foot-2 to 6-foot-4, heavy set and wearing a black skull cap, a gray jacket with black lining, blue jeans and Timberland boots.
Theft
- Six animal traps that were placed throughout a property in the 500 block of North Elmwood Avenue were stolen, sometime between noon on Jan. 24 and noon on Jan. 25. The estimated loss is $450.
Burglary
A motor vehicle was burglarized in the 1200 block of North Elmwood Avenue at 4:08 p.m. on Feb. 3. The offender gained entry to the vehicle by breaking the driver’s side front-door window. They then ransacked the vehicle. The estimated loss due to damage is $300.
These items, obtained from the Oak Park and River Forest police departments, came from reports, Jan. 29-Feb. 1, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Anyone named in these reports has only been charged with a crime and cases have not yet been adjudicated. We report the race of a suspect only when a serious crime has been committed, the suspect is still at large, and police have provided us with a detailed physical description of the suspect as they seek the public’s help in making an arrest.
Compiled by Timothy Inklebarger
