Chicago — The FBI now confirms that the bank robber who shot at a security guard during a holdup in the Loop last week is the same man who robbed a River North bank at gunpoint earlier this month.
In a new bulletin, the federal agency said it is offering a $1,000 reward for “information leading directly to the arrest and conviction” of the robber.
Chicago police responded to shots fired and a bank robbery in progress at Fifth Third Bank, 1 South Wacker, just after 3 p.m. Thursday. CPD said the robber shot at a bank security guard, and the guard fired back.
Video recorded from a nearby high-rise showed the robber gathering loose cash from the ground near the bank’s shattered revolving door. A large pane of glass in the bank’s storefront was also shot out.
The guard suffered a minor graze wound to his hand but declined medical attention, the police said.
Coincidentally, the shooting occurred just a few hours after the FBI issued a bulletin about the River North bank holdup that the agency has now linked to the same offender.
Around 2:51 p.m. on March 3, a man entered Chase Bank, 401 North Clark, displayed a handgun, and announced a robbery.
Officers arrived quickly and pursued the robber eastbound through an alley between Hubbard and Kinzie streets, but they lost him, according to CPD radio transmissions.
The FBI released photos of a man holding a gun and standing at a bank counter, but the images are blurry and do not clearly show his face.
The agency said he is a Black male between 35 and 40 years old who stands between 5’8″ and 6 feet tall and weighs 160 to 180 pounds.
During the first robbery, he carried a backpack and dressed in a black hoodie with a black surgical mask, blue surgical gloves, black pants, and dark shoes, according to the FBI.
On Thursday, he wore a black hooded jacket, a red hat, white face mask, black winter gloves, blue jeans, and black and white shoes.
Information can be shared with the FBI Chicago field office at 312-421-6700 or tips.fbi.gov.
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