By ANTHONY BOTTAN
According to Lynbrook police, Natasha Benton, 26, of Hancock Street in Brooklyn, went into the HSBC bank on Atlantic Avenue at around 3:30 p.m. She filled out a bank deposit slip with false information, and handed a black paper bag and a note to the teller. Police report the note said that no one would get hurt if the teller filled the bag with money. The teller obliged, but used what police called bait money -- a pack of bills that has a red dye capsule in it, which when explodes, puts ink on the money and lets off red smoke.
Police said after the red dye pack exploded outside of the bank and began letting off red smoke, Benton ditched the money, picked up some loose bills and ran down Atlantic Avenue. A passerby noticed the red smoke and chased Benton as she ran west on Stauderman Avenue toward the Long Island Rail Road trestle. After eluding the passerby, Benton hid behind a fenced area and changed her clothes. She emerged through the fence, in new clothes, and ran through a nail salon on Sunrise Highway.
Authorities said she ran through the front door of Gino's Pizzeria on Sunrise Highway, only to run into Lynbrook police who were waiting at the back door. Benton was arrested at 4:31 p.m. and charged with third-degree robbery. No injuries were reported. She was arraigned on May 15 in First District Court in Hempstead.
Lynbrook Police Chief Joseph Neve said the help of the public aided the police in Benton's arrest. "This incident is a great example of how a positive outcome results when the police and public work together," Neve said.
