By JEFF LIPTON
The robber walked into the Bank of America at 147 Long Beach Road at 10:40 a.m. and gave a note to a teller stating that he had a gun and demanding money. The man never displayed a weapon, detectives said.
After being handed the cash, the robber ran out the back door of the bank toward the Long Island Rail Road station, according to Detective Sgt. John King of the 4th Squad.
Seven employees and one customer were in the bank at the time, but no one was reported injured, police said.
The robber was described as a white man in his mid- to late 30s, about 6 feet 2, unshaven and wearing a black sweatshirt with a hood that was pulled down to just above his eyes, investigators said.
Detectives checking to see whether the man may have been involved in any similar bank robberies in Nassau County have determined that his description does not match those of any other recent bank robbers. ³It¹s not part of any pattern that we know of ‹ not yet, at least,² said King.
A little more than two hours after the Island Park robbery, however, a Bank of America at 2300 Grand Ave. in Baldwin was held up in the same manner. A man approached a teller and handed her a note announcing a robbery, in addition to making a verbal demand for money, investigators said.
After the teller complied with his demands and gave him money, the robber ran out of the bank and headed north on Grand Avenue. Police officers were provided with a description of the suspect, spotted him at the Baldwin train station and arrested him, detectives said. The suspect, identified as Robert Davidson, 49, of 26 Jerusalem Ave. in Hempstead, was charged with third-degree robbery and was arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead last Saturday, police said.
Officials said they do not believe the two robberies were committed by the same man. ³Right now, they don¹t appear to be related,² said a Nassau County police spokesman. ³But he could have a friend that he¹s working with. At the present time [detectives] are looking into all the possibilities.²
Police said the Island Park bank robbery was the first in the precinct in a long time. ³We do not believe that there¹s a robbery pattern here,² said Inspector Richard McCarrick, commanding officer of the 4th Precinct. ³But all of our [officers] have been alerted, and patrols have been intensified around the banks.²
McCarrick added that ³investigatory leads are being followed² in the Island Park incident.
Bank of America officials could not be reached for comment.
The Nassau County Police Department¹s Robbery Squad is investigating. Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 244-TIPS. All callers will remain anonymous, police said.
Comments about this story? JLipton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 210.
