A Vancouver man is behind bars after allegedly robbing a bank in North Vancouver Thursday afternoon.
The 45-year-old suspect walked into the Scotiabank at 1500 Marine Drive a little after 2:30 p.m. and demanded money from the teller, according to investigators. The frightened employee handed over cash and the man reportedly fled, but not before staff took down the licence plate and description of his getaway car a blue Jeep that turned out to be stolen.
North Vancouver RCMP rushed to the scene and radioed the information to neighbouring jurisdictions. About 25 minutes later, a Vancouver patrol car spotted the Jeep on Kingsway near 12th Avenue. The officer pulled the man over and ordered him to the ground at gunpoint. A search of the Jeep turned up the stolen cash.
The case was closed smoothly thanks to the quick actions not only of the police but of the bank employees as well, said Cpl. Richard De Jong, a spokesman for the North Vancouver RCMP.
Extreme kudos to staff at the bank for being as articulate as they were, he said.
The fact they had the presence of mind to record the licence plate, description and direction of travel of the getaway car made life that much easier for the officers trying to track it, he said.
Karl Eugene Decker has been charged with theft, two counts of robbery and violation of parole. He had already been the subject of a Canada-wide arrest warrant after reportedly walking away from a Vancouver halfway house.
