News

Bank offers cash for thief’s capture

Officials are offering a $10,000 reward for information on an early morning robbery on State Street Thursday.

A man armed with a handgun robbed the Associated Bank on the 200 block of State Street and fled with an undisclosed amount of money.

The man approached an Associated Bank employee and followed him into the bank, according to Joel DeSpain, Madison Police Department’s public information officer.

DeSpain said the man told the employee and another employee already inside the bank to wait for a period of time before they called the police.

After about 10 minutes the employees called the MPD. DeSpain said the MPD received the call at 7:41 a.m. and arrived at the scene shortly before investigators from the FBI.

The case falls under FBI jurisdiction like other bank robberies since it is a federal crime to “rob any national bank or state member bank of the Federal Reserve System,” according to the FBI.

The police report described the gunman as average build, 5’ 6” to 5’ 9” and wearing a blue coat with a hood and a mask.

DeSpain said police are unsure of how much money the robber stole, adding, “Once police reports come out we might have more detail.”

To catch the perpetrator, DeSpain said police will “look at the surveillance tape, search for any fingerprints or forensic evidence and compare it with other robberies.”

Eric Skrum, communications director for the Wisconsin Bankers Association, said it is offering a reward for up to $10,000 for identifying and convicting the person responsible for the robbery.

The association will issue a statement Friday announcing the reward and requesting anyone with information on the robbery to call Madison Crime Stoppers at 266-6014.