Customers help apprehend bank robber
Two quick thinking customers at the Interior Savings Credit Union branch in Rutland stopped a man during an attempted bank robbery on Nov. 17.
Barry Heidelbrecht was making a deposit at the credit union after 4 p.m. that day when he noticed a man two tills over having what he thought was an argument with one of the tellers.
Heidelbrecht said the man was asking about money, and kept hiding his face.
Heidelbrecht said the man got hold of the teller's purse, and got in a tugging match with another teller.
With another customer who was there, Heidelbrecht pinned the man against the credit union counter until police arrived. He said the man asked him if he 'wanted to get shot' as they struggled.
Heidelbrecht said he saw no evidence of a gun on the man after police arrived. He noted that officers emptied his pockets and discovered a chunk of broken glass.
Heidelbrecht said he didn't think twice about acting, and would hope that anybody would act as he did. He noted that the man was possibly on drugs.
"He didn't seem to be in the right frame of mind."
Verla Bernacki was opening an account at the credit union, sitting in one of the branch offices when she heard banging noises.
Bernacki said she looked out to see the bank robber suspect fighting to get away as Heidelbrecht and another customer held him down.
Bernacki also said the man appeared to be high on drugs. "His face was all red."
Police, fire and ambulance personnel attended to the man in his mid-20s in the parking lot of the credit union after he began twitching in the back of a police car after his arrest. With his dark hair, goatee, black jeans and black hoodie, the man is similar in description to a man suspected of robbing the Bank of Montreal on Harvey Avenue less than an hour earlier.
RCMP officers and a police dog investigated the area around Gordon and Sutherland after the Bank of Montreal robbery. A BMO employee said it was too soon and that bank officials were unable to comment at the time.
msimmons@kelownacapnews.com
BlockTalk is your place for your voice to contribute news, events, videos and photos about your neighbourhood and family.
View the Community Map to see what is being said in 
COMMENTS
Let's keep comments:
All participants will register for an account. It's simple, takes seconds and will keep the comments free of trolls, cranks, and drive-by commenters.
As a community site, we ask that the community help by using the "Report" button on each comment if they feel a comment has violated these rules. You can also use the 'Like' button on each comment to voice your opinion about that particular comment.