Police arrest two in connection with bank robbery

By Kipp Hanley

Published: August 12, 2008

The Prince William County police arrested two 16-year-old boys after a bank robbery that happened at 11:16 Tuesday morning at the United Bank in the Triangle Shopping Plaza in Dumfries, said police spokesperson Erika Hernandez.

According to Hernandez, two males with a handgun entered the bank and demanded money.

They left the bank with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Police who were responding to the call noticed two suspicious people on a black motor scooter traveling north on Jefferson Davis Highway, Hernandez said.

One of the officers tried to get the scooter to stop, but the driver turned onto Panther Pride Drive and into the parking lot Mary Williams Elementary School where he collided with one of the police vehicles, Hernandez said

The officers caught the two after a short foot chase, Hernandez said.

The suspects, both Dale City residents, will be charged with robbery and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, said Hernandez.

About 50 yards from the bank entrance, a black motorcycle helmet and black pellet gun were found in one of the shopping center’s parking spaces. The pellet gun was missing a clip. A magazine clip was found just outside the bank, which closed for the day. Police said it appears that the clip matches the gun found in the parking lot.

Triangle resident Leon Stalling was in the shopping center washing clothes at the Dumfries Laundromat, across the parking lot from the bank, just after the incident occurred. Stalling, who has been a United Bank customer for the last six months, had walked into the Dollar General store a few doors down from the laundry when he heard the news from a friend employed there.

“That’s a shame,” said Stalling, who said he won’t stop banking at United. “I know times are hard but … you can’t mess around like that.”

No injuries occurred during the robbery, said Hernandez.

The juveniles were taken to the Juvenile Detention Center and will have a hearing in the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.

No one was injured during the robbery or during the pursuit, Hernandez said.