Comm Ave Bank Robbed
Armed suspect fled toward BU Bridge
A man carrying a small-caliber handgun robbed the University Credit Union shortly before noon today, fleeing the scene with an undisclosed amount of cash in the direction of Kenmore Square, according to Brookline Police.
The bank was closed for the remainder of the day and will reopen on Thursday morning.
BU sent out a mass alert notifying the University community shortly before 1 p.m.
“Fortunately, no one was injured,” says Colin Riley, BU’s executive director of media relations. “It’s very likely that once the suspect left, he fled the area completely.”
Brookline Police spokesman Lt. Philip Harrington describes the suspect as a black male with a mustache and wearing a puffy black coat and glasses. Bank cameras captured a picture of the robber, and it will be released by the Brookline Police Department, which has jurisdiction in the area. The photo will be posted on the Mass Most Wanted Web site this afternoon.
The suspect entered the credit union, at 846 Commonwealth Ave., alone and waited in the lobby until customers had left. Then, he approached the cashier’s counter and flashed a note to the teller — too quickly for it to be read, according to BU Police Sergeant Larry Cuzzi. The man then slipped a black small-caliber handgun from his waistband to his sleeve.
BU owns the Brookline building housing the credit union, but employees do not work for the University. The Brookline Police robbery task force is investigating the crime.
According to Cuzzi, the credit union has not been robbed in the 12 years he has been on the BUPD.
Businesses on either side of the credit union were unaware of the robbery until police cruisers pulled up.
Juliana Fakhri, an owner of Sicilia’s Pizzeria & Café, just east of the credit union, says she didn’t see anything, but that police expressed interest in the video camera tucked under the shop’s sign. “It’s on all the time,” she says. “It watches our doors and the sidewalk.”
Waseem and Simon Heraiki, whose parents own the Sunoco gas station next door, say their station has been broken into, but they have never faced an armed robber. “I’ll definitely stay on my toes after that,” says Waseem.
“It’s so scary,” Fakhri says. “In broad daylight.”
Leslie Friday can be reached at lfriday@bu.edu. Cynthia K. Buccini contributed to this article; she can be reached at cbuccini@bu.edu.
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