WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Bank robbery in The Junction

| Crime | West Seattle news | West Seattle police

(WSB photo)

11:40 AM: Police are responding to The Junction to search for a bank robber. The robbery is reported to have happened at HomeStreet Bank (4022 SW Alaska; WSB sponsor). No description yet; a K-9 team will be part of the search.

11:48 AM: The description so far: White or Hispanic man, 30s, 6′, beanie, gray neck gaiter, gray/possibly orange work gloves, gray hoodie, last seen headed north on foot through the nearest alley. If you’re in the area, you may hear police making loudspeaker announcements about the K-9 deployment.

12:01 PM: A HomeStreet Bank employee confirms to us at the scene that they were held up. The branch is temporarily closed for the investigation. Photo added above. No word so far of a weapon being involved, nor are any injuries reported. If you have any information for the investigation, the SPD incident # is 23-024792.

12:37 PM: No further updates. Commenters note that two schools which are a few blocks north of the scene went into lockdown as a precaution.

3:25 PM: The only additional information released by police is that the robber “handed the bank teller a note that instructed her to give him the money. No weapon was seen or implied.”

Watertowerjim January 26, 2023 (11:57 am)

Holy Rosary School in lockdown.

Sarah Rodermund January 26, 2023 (1:13 pm)

Brooke Gosztola January 26, 2023 (12:28 pm)

WSB January 26, 2023 (12:36 pm)

Thanks. No further updates – I don’t know how active the search still is or isn’t.

WS School January 26, 2023 (12:45 pm)

Thanks WSB. Any updates are appreciated as we sit in lockdown with restless students.

hhhh January 26, 2023 (1:06 pm)

All the businesses at the Junction are clear targets for this type of crime. Why isn’t there more police presence?

DO January 26, 2023 (2:35 pm)

Ok, seriously get the terminology correct. I have worked in schools for years now and have been on Safety Committees as has my husband. It’s a shelter-in-place, not a lockdown. A lockdown is MUCH more serious. Scare us to death thinking there is an active shooter or similar situation going on at our children’s schools!

The effects of a lockdown are different than those of a shelter-in-place order. When ordered to shelter in place, people must stay in or near home/school and reduce exposure to the outside world. In a shelter-in-place situation, individuals may be permitted outside for certain activities.

In a lockdown, they need to stay inside and sometimes even secure the perimeter of their house or apartment. There are usually fewer exceptions to when they may be able to leave.

WS School January 26, 2023 (2:50 pm)

Thank you DO for your education. When we hear “Hold up” and “suspect at large”, we go on lockdown. Our students were not allowed to go outside. I have the terminology correct.
- DO January 26, 2023 (4:49 pm)
  
  my comment was directed at the Blog rather than schools.
Chemist January 26, 2023 (2:59 pm)

Looks like one school is using the term “Lockdown” and another is using “Shelter In Place” so maybe the “correct” term differs depending on how the schools have chosen to use them.
- DO January 26, 2023 (4:53 pm)
  
  No, that was discussed several years ago – it HAS to be standardized for this very reason. Terminology was determined. Please see https://www.k12.wa.us/sites/default/files/public/safetycenter/emergency/pubdocs/emergencypreparednessguide2016.pdf

Flo B January 26, 2023 (3:26 pm)

Comments here show schools are, again in a lose lose situation. No matter how they word their reaction to a situation they’ll be pilloried for doing/saying too much or pilloried for doing/saying too little.

onion January 26, 2023 (4:32 pm)

Flo B: I don’t think anyone is being pilloried.

ACG January 26, 2023 (3:42 pm)

ummmm, DO-I am not sure who you are directing your comment at, but your definition of lockdown is “In a lockdown, they need to stay inside and sometimes even secure the perimeter of their house or apartment. There are usually fewer exceptions to when they may be able to leave” It sounds like the children were restricted from leaving the school, unable to go outside, all outside doors were locked/perimeters secured, and individuals outside the building were not allowed in. Sounds like your definition of a lockdown. Regardless, I appreciate that you work with safety in schools- and I am grateful to people like you who work hard to keep our children safe.

John B January 26, 2023 (10:36 pm)

You know, sometimes I think West Seattle is one of the chillest places in all of Seattle, other times I read threads like this and am reminded that maybe it’s not, at all.