Lansing Police are looking for a suspect who robbed a Lansing bank Thursday morning.

A teller at National City Bank, 2101 E. Michigan Ave., was given a note by the suspect, stating he had a gun. No weapons were visible. It also instructed her to hand over an undisclosed amount of money, police said.

The teller handed the suspect, who had waited in line patiently, an undisclosed amount of money and he fled the area. He left in a 1990’s 4-door maroon Dodge Dynasty. The license plate number and direction he went are unknown.

The suspect is described as a black male, between 20 and 25 years old, 5 feet 8 inches, 150 pounds with a medium complexion and build.

Lansing Police Lt. Ray Hall said that bank surveillance captured a photo of him committing the act.

“Even though there have been a few robberies in mid-Michigan in the last few months, the department, as well as the community, has the ability to catch the suspects,” Hall said.

This is the fourth bank robbery in the area since August. The first was Aug. 31 at Citizens Bank, 1331 E. Grand River Ave., the second was Sept. 4 at Michigan National Bank, 2731 E. Grand River Ave., and the third was Nov. 2 at Michigan National Bank, 1390 W. Lake Lansing Road.

East Lansing has been the target of multiple robberies in the last three months. East Lansing Police Capt. Juli Liebler said she thinks most bank robberies are drug related or copy-cat crimes.

“Bank robberies are just a matter of people hearing about them, so then it comes to mind,” Liebler said. “People just aren’t creative, so when these activities get press, they hear about them and decide they are going to do it.”

Liebler said the good thing about technology and bank security is that the suspects are usually caught.

“As far as prevention goes, some banks have bulletproof glass which makes it more difficult and intimidating for robbers,” Liebler said. “Banks also have cameras that can record images of the robbers and get the face out in the community.”