A business woman was robbed while making a night deposit at a downtown Nanaimo bank branch on the weekend.
The robbery happened at about 9:20 p.m. Friday at the CIBC bank branch in Port Place Shopping Centre, according to Nanaimo RCMP.
The victim, 47, had just entered the bank when a man came up from behind and shoved her to the ground.
The man was on top of her as they struggled over the deposit bag, but fled as soon as he ripped the bag from her hands.
He was last seen running toward the waterfront.
Police said the woman, who was dazed and sore from the altercation but otherwise uninjured, called 911.
Police were unable to find the suspect, who was dressed in black with, possibly, some white material on the side of his clothing, wore a dark baseball cap and may have a dark complexion.
Const. Gary O’Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesman, said the woman was robbed in spite of having taken precautions.
“She varies her schedule, she parks near the drop off, she’s always aware of her environment,” O’Brien said. “This particular time – whatever happened – he overpowered her and took the deposits.”
He said police are scanning security footage from the Great Canadian Casino. It was also light out at the time of the robbery and there were numerous pedestrians in the area, so there is a good probability someone saw something.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345 or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.nanaimocrimestoppers.com.
