Brandishing a hypodermic needle as a weapon, an unidentified man robbed the Emmet Street Virginia National Bank and escaped with an undisclosed amount of money early yesterday evening.
A white male dressed in a gray T-shirt, with blondish hair and a thin face, presented a note demanding money to one of the bank tellers at about 5:40 p.m., Charlottesville Police Lt. Gary Pleasants said.
The suspect then threatened the teller with a hypodermic needle, grabbed the money and escaped through the back door, heading toward University Hall.
Police conducted an immediate search in surrounding areas but were unable to locate the suspect, Pleasants said.
Ann Marshall, manager of the neighboring Taco Bell restaurant, said she was shaken by the robbery but not surprised. She said she thinks there is limited police presence in the area.
"The police very seldom come through here," Marshall said. "This is the first time that I have seen them."
Marshall said in light of the robbery, she plans to call on the Charlottesville Police to have more squad cars in the area.
At the Emmet Street Wachovia Bank ATM yesterday evening, University students said they still felt safe withdrawing money despite the recent attack.
"These things just happen," fourth-year College student Kristy Kendrick said.
Second-year College student Davin Rosborough said he felt the incident was too far away from University Grounds to make any difference to students, and he did not feel particularly unsafe.
"I'm not reacting much because it is not that close," Rosborough said.
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