An unknown man robbed the Fifth Third Bank on Grand River Avenue Thursday afternoon.
Wearing a black full-length parka with a fur hood and face mask, the man placed a large-caliber silver handgun on the teller counter and demanded money, East Lansing police Lt. Kevin Daley said.
After the teller put an undisclosed amount of money in the bag the man supplied, the man went out the back door and ran to a white car parked on Albert Street.
As he entered the car, a red dye device hidden in the money exploded and splattered the ink on the passenger door as the man held it out the window.
The man and an unknown male driver left — westbound on Albert Street — shortly after 3:15 p.m.
Police described the suspect as a black male, between 5 feet 5 inches and 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing between 150 and 170 pounds. The getaway car is an older white four-door sedan, possibly made by General Motors Corp.
East Lansing police informed other departments throughout neighboring counties to keep an eye out for the suspect, East Lansing police Chief Tom Wibert said, adding that the FBI is assisting in the case.
"I can't think of any time in the last decade where someone's got away with a bank robbery in East Lansing," Wibert said. "They're usually really easy to solve with cameras, and the FBI is involved and they have some pretty incredible resources.
"I'm sure that this one has a pretty good chance of being solved."
Jamie D'Luge had her wallet in hand as she walked up to the bank at about 4 p.m., which was blocked off by police tape and had a sign directing customers to the nearest branch.
"I was trying to put some money in real quick for the weekend," said D'Luge, an interdisciplinary studies in social science junior.
Three police cars were parked on the other side of the building, where officers took fingerprints from the back door. An officer also took photos of the glass door.
Neither bank manager Trina Pulver nor company spokesperson Peggy Janei would comment on the robbery.
The bank, located at 309 E. Grand River Ave., was last robbed in December 2003. The most recent bank robbery in East Lansing was in August 2004 at the Standard Federal Bank, 1390 W. Lake Lansing Road.
Melissa Domsic can be reached at domsicme@msu.edu.
