Police cut a suspected bank robber from an air duct in an Oak Lawn strip mall
early this morning, 12 hours after he dropped from a ceiling, brandished a
handgun, tied up two employees and stuffed cash into a black bag, authorities
said.Officers had spotted the fleeing robber on the roof of the strip mall in the 11100 block of South Pulaski Road and finally found him around 12:30 a.m., police said. He was "hiding in an air duct so tight he had to be cut out," said Oak Lawn Police Division Chief Michael Kaufmann.
The man, in his 20s, had dropped through the ceiling of the Bank of America branch around 2 p.m. Saturday and pulled out of handgun, police said.
"The defendant came in through the roof and landed on the floor in there," Kaufmann said. "He took the employees and put them on the floor and zip-tied them."
Police, joined by SWAT teams, found the suspect hiding in an air duct above a ceiling in the middle of the shopping center and arrested him without incident, Kaufmann said.
The South Suburban Emergency Response Team responded, along with Cook County sheriff's police, the FBI and Chicago police.
Air ducts are mainly used in ventilation, heating and air conditioning so as to remove and deliver air. Such important airflows include exhaust air, supply air and return air.
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