Area officers were continuing their hunt Monday afternoon for a masked armed robber who took cash from a downtown Wytheville business.
“We do have people of interest that we’re looking to talk to,” Wytheville Police Department Capt. Rick Arnold said Monday afternoon.
According to Arnold, a suspect wearing a ski mask and gloves walked into Houseman’s Tax Service, which also offers check cashing and money transfer services, at 9:36 a.m. displayed what appeared to be a gun and demanded money from a clerk.
Police believe the robber, who was wearing gray pants and a dark plaid shirt, is a tall, skinny male, but a female suspect isn’t being ruled out, Arnold said.
Police aren’t sure whether the robber got away on foot or in a vehicle after leaving the business. No one was injured in the crime, and Arnold wouldn’t say how much money the robber took.
As officers looked for the suspect, three Wytheville schools remained on modified lockdown. Spiller Elementary School was the first to act soon after hearing about the robbery around 10:30 a.m. and that the suspect was on foot, according to Ritchie Thomas, Wythe County School Board spokesman.
Thomas said George Wythe High School and Scott Memorial Middle School went on modified lock down next. He said the two schools were continuing with regular activities but that Sheriff’s Office resource officers were posted at the front doors and were not admitting anyone they didn’t know or who didn’t have identification.
In an unrelated case, town police are investigating a string of Saturday evening smash-and-grab thefts from vehicles parked at Marquee Cinemas in Wytheville.
Arnold said eight wallets and purses were taken from five vehicles while their occupants were in the movie theater. The thefts occurred between 9 and 11 p.m., and the vehicles’ windows were broken to gain entry, he said.
Arnold said vehicles parked near the interstate make easy targets for thieves and cautioned residents to be more cautious with their valuables.
“Do not leave your pocketbook in the vehicle,” he said.
Jeffrey Simmons can be reached at 228-6611 or
.
I commend the police, and the school authorities to shut the schools down Monday, when a robbery occurred there in the town. Here in Roanoke, robberies occur often, all throughout the city and county, and no shut down of schools occur. Its just carry on with your business and that is it. I commend you for your actions. Perhaps the police department there should pass on, this action taken, to the Roanoke City and County police departments.
Posted by Linda Stultz from Roanoke on 10/23 at 12:32 AM
Linda, there is certainly a greater sensitivity to crime in Wytheville, because fortunately we aren’t exposed to it very often.
I am also glad Spiller went into lock-down, as that affects me personally.
However, this report concerns me, and raises serious questions regarding the apparent lack of coordination and communication between law enforcement and Wythe County schools. The robbery occurred within a few blocks of Spiller, and certainly the police were notified of the crime very soon after it occurred. Yet Spiller wasn’t locked down until almost an hour later. The criminal could have strolled over to King’s Produce, bought an ice cream cone, sat and enjoyed it at Withers Park, taken a few laps around the walking track, and still had time to walk straight into Spiller before it was locked down.
I get the impression that someone at Spiller heard about this indirectly, as did I and most other people in town, through word of mouth.
Does a protocol even exist for the Police Department to provide immediate notification to the school system when dangerous individuals are known to be in the area? After the terrible incident at Virginia Tech, I would expect extremely tight coordination between law enforcement and educational establishments (both public and private), with timely notification and action being the most important outcome.
Posted by Dan East from Wytheville on 10/25 at 07:20 AM
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