CLEVELAND, Ohio — Investigators are exploring possible connections between a pair of bank robberies Tuesday in University Heights and Cleveland.
Two men passed a threatening note to a teller just before 10:45 a.m. at a Dollar Bank in University Heights. The Cleveland Division of the FBI is exploring whether one of those men also passed a note to a teller less than an hour later at a Third Federal Savings & Loan in Cleveland, an FBI spokeswoman said.
No one was harmed during either of the robberies. In both incidents, the robbers left in four-door sedans parked outside the banks.
The FBI released surveillance photos from both incidents and is asking the public to help identify the two men.
Investigators have not confirmed whether the two incidents are related. But investigators often see cases where the same robbers hit multiple banks within a short time frame, an FBI spokeswoman said.
In University Heights, two men walked into the bank on Warrensville Center Road near Cedar Road and handed a note to a teller. The note demanded cash and intimated that the men were armed, the FBI said in a news release.
The men left in a light-colored, four-door sedan parked outside the bank.
In Cleveland, one man walked into the Lorain Avenue bank just before 11:30 a.m. and handed a light-colored bag and a threatening note to a teller. The teller handed over cash, and the man passed the note to a second teller, who also handed over cash, the FBI said.
The man left area in a silver Ford Focus or Kia parked in front of the bank.
The man who robbed the Cleveland bank wore a blue hooded sweatshirt, gray pants and a checkered hat. One of the University Heights robbers also wore a blue hooded sweatshirt and gray pants, but witnesses described his hat as having rhinestones and pearls on the brim, the FBI said.
Anyone with information about the bank robberies is being asked to contact the FBI, Cuyahoga County Crimestoppers, Cleveland police or University Heights police. Reward money is available to anyone who provides information leading to an identification and arrest, the FBI said.
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