Gunman claims he has bomb, robs west valley bank

By Ricardo Torres-Cortez

Published Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016 | 11 a.m.

Updated Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016 | 2:03 p.m.

A gunman who robbed a west valley bank this morning said he had a bomb and made off with an undisclosed amount of money before officers arrived and determined there were no explosives in the satchel he left behind, Metro Police said.

The robbery, which happened about 9:40 a.m., prompted police to close the road and evacuate businesses near the U.S. Bank branch in the 3300 block of South Hualapai Way, officials said.

The robber, who was armed with a black, semiautomatic gun, walked up to a teller with a nylon satchel over his shoulder and asked to speak with the manager, police said. He demanded money, telling the manager and a teller that the bag contained a bomb, police said.

He fled with the cash in a silver, compact sedan, police said.

After about three hours, authorities determined that there were no explosives in the bag, police said.

Hualapai was closed from Desert Inn to Spring Mountain roads until shortly after 12:30 p.m.

Metro released surveillance photos of a suspect, described as between 5 feet 5 inches and 5 feet 9 inches tall with a slender build. He was wearing a camouflage hat and pants, a gray sweatshirt and covered his face with white cloth.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 702-828-3855. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555 or online at crimestoppersofnv.com.