Bank robbery suspect caught outside Flagler campus

By Tiffanie Reynolds | gargoyle@flagler.edu

A suspect matching the description of a man who robbed the Wells Fargo Bank downtown on Cathedral Place was found sitting on the fountain outside of the Kenan Hall parking lot by police, according to Flagler College Director of Security Kerry Davis.

He said St. Augustine Police and St. Johns County Sheriff’s deputies apprehended the man and transported him to the St. Johns County Jail around 2:10 p.m. on Friday.

The robbery was reported to police at 11:01 a.m.

Davis was notified by students and staff who had been at the scene of the crime before police contacted him. He sent e-mail alerts notifying the campus that the suspect was still at large, that a dye pack from the bank may have gone off staining the man’s clothes red and that the subject may have been carrying a handgun.

St. Augustine Police could not be reached for comment this afternoon.

While he said Flagler has dealt with emergencies before, this is the first time the college has dealt with an ongoing emergency such as this.

“I believe we’ve had one incident where there was a crime off-campus, and we alerted the student body via the campus alert, but it was shortly thereafter the person was caught so we didn’t have to continue,” he said.

The man was described as a white male, 50 years old with a mustache, faded jeans and a tan, long-sleeve t-shirt.

Late Friday afternoon the downtown branch of Wells Fargo bank was still temporarily closed.