Police looking for Phil Campbell bank robber

PHIL CAMPBELL –

Phil Campbell Police Chief Merrell Potter said the man entered the bank through the front door and passed a note to one of two tellers inside the bank demanding money just after 1:30 p.m. Thursday. The teller gave the man an unspecified amount of money and he left on foot.

Potter said the man told the teller that he would shoot her if she did not meet his demands. The teller complied and no one was injured.

The bank employees notified authorities just after the man fled. Phil Campbell police officers were on the scene within 30 seconds of receiving the call.

Potter said investigators are looking for a blue Chevrolet minivan that may have been in the area at the time of the robbery, which was reported to authorities at 1:32 p.m.

The bank is located on Alabama 13 next to the Piggly Wiggly grocery store. Employees at Dorothy’s Produce across the street from the bank said they saw nothing suspicious until police began arriving on the scene.

After interviewing several people in the area, police began focusing their search efforts on the blue Chevrolet Astro van that was reportedly at a nearby gas station about the time of the robbery. Images of the suspicious van captured by the Phil Campbell Police Department reveal some type of design down the side of the van.

Friday afternoon, Potter said all efforts were being made to locate that van and to interview the person who was driving it.

The FBI, Alabama Bureau of Investigation and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office are assisting Phil Campbell police with the investigation.