MOORHEAD, Minn. – An armed man robbed a bank inside Hornbacher’s grocery store Monday and fled to a nearby liquor store where he stole a vehicle with a man still inside, according to Moorhead police.
Lt. Brad Penas said the robber ordered the man in the vehicle to drive into North Dakota and then let him out near West Acres mall in Fargo. That man was not hurt, nor was anyone else, Penas said.
The stolen vehicle, a maroon 2010 Ford F-150 pickup truck with four doors and Minnesota plates 007NBD, was last seen headed north on 42nd Street South near 13th Avenue in Fargo, Penas said.
Police believe the robber may still be driving the truck. He remained at large as of Monday evening.
The robber, who may have spoken with a Southern accent, was described as a black man in his 50s under 6 feet tall with a medium build. He has short, dark hair that’s graying, a slightly receding hairline and dark spots on his face. He wore a dark jacket and was carrying a blue sports bag with drawstrings.
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The holdup at Hornbacher’s, 101 11th St. S. in Moorhead, was reported about 11:50 a.m. at the Wells Fargo branch just inside the entrance of the grocery store.
The robber approached a bank employee, displayed a gun and demanded money. After leaving the store with an undisclosed amount of cash, he tried to carjack a vehicle in the parking lot, but the people inside took the keys and got out of the vehicle, Penas said.
The robber then made his way to 99 Bottles, a liquor store a block west of Hornbacher’s, where he carjacked the pickup truck, Penas said.
Police alerted child care centers in the area, and the campus of Minnesota State University Moorhead briefly went into lockdown while officers searched for the robber with help from a police dog.
Police initially received reports that the man was carrying a sawed-off shotgun, but investigators, who were still reviewing surveillance video, could not confirm what sort of gun he had, Penas said.
Anyone with information about the robber or the whereabouts of the stolen truck is asked to call the Red River Regional Dispatch Center at (701) 451-7660.
