Tellers at 2 Kennewick banks hand over cash to the same thief

Kennewick police are still looking for a man who stole money from two different Kennewick banks on Thursday.

Police are calling them thefts, and not robberies, because the man did not use or threaten force.

However, he left with money from the tellers at two U.S. Banks.

Officers responded at 1:10 p.m. to the 1221 N. Columbia Center Blvd. branch and learned that a man allegedly approached a teller and soon after left the bank with an undisclosed amount of cash.

The suspect was described as wearing light-colored clothing with dark hair, according to a Kennewick police news release.

Detectives took over the investigation and are trying to identify the man. They said they don’t know if he had an accomplice, or if he arrived at and left the bank in a vehicle, the news release said.

Later Thursday afternoon, police learned the same man stole money from the U.S. Bank at 303 W. First Ave. earlier in the day, about 11:50 a.m.

Investigators pulled security footage from both banks and confirmed it was the same man. In the morning, he was wearing a ball cap and appeared to be talking on a cellphone.

People with information on the suspect or either incident are encouraged to call non-emergency dispatchers at 509-628-9333 and ask to speak with a Kennewick officer.

This story was originally published February 20, 2020 at 5:47 PM.