WEST ENFIELD, Maine — An unidentified man wearing a surgical face mask and dark gloves robbed a Bridge Street credit union of an undetermined amount of money Monday, officials said.
The robber walked into the Penobscot County Federal Credit Union at 98 Bridge St. at about 8:15 a.m., had an “interaction” with a bank teller and left with the money, according to Detective Sgt. Andrew Whitehouse of the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office. A statement from the credit union said the man handed a teller a note.
Several investigators canvassed the area and interviewed witnesses, including people at a gas station and convenience store across the street. They were reviewing surveillance video from the credit union and store and trying to determine how the robber got out of the area, Whitehouse said.
“There were a couple vehicles in the area at the time. We are [checking] them out to see if any were involved,” Whitehouse said. “The next step is to keep doing interviews with witnesses, go over the surveillance video and see what we can piece together and just keep working the case.”
A Maine State Police dog handler and tracking dog went through the area. The FBI also was there, Whitehouse said.
Workers at Enfield Citgo at 976 Main Road said they had seen some of the robbery or its aftermath but said that detectives had asked them not to comment.
A truck driver, Duane Drost of 7 Emerson St., described the incident as scary. “Those people are good friends to me,” Drost said of the credit union employees. “I hate to see this happen.”
Drost said a car had parked near the credit union for about an hour the night before the robbery.
“A lot of cars sit here, but usually not that long,” he said. The southern end of Emerson Street is about 200 feet from the credit union.
The robber was described as a white man, approximately 5 feet 7 inches, weighing 185 to 200 pounds with dark hair and wearing a navy blue hooded sweatshirt, surgical mask, dark-rimmed glasses, dark gloves, blue jeans and grayish-blue sneakers, officials said.
The credit union is offering a cash reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect. Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office at 945-4636, Whitehouse said. He hoped to have surveillance footage to release later Monday.
The credit union has branches in Bangor, Old Town and West Enfield, according to its website.
The last robbery reported at a branch occurred in January 2011. A man was sentenced to five years in prison for that robbery.
BDN writer Ryan McLaughlin contributed to this report.