Union City bank robber brought own bag to heist before death

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

The bank robber who died when he was shot by a police officer in Union City Tuesday morning bagged the cash himself in a small zippered bag he brought to the heist, according to an account of the robbery provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The unidentified gunman entered the RBC Centura Bank after 10 a.m., producing a small handgun and telling everyone to put their hands up, police said. He then jumped the counter and filled the bag with cash, police said.
During the robbery, the suspect confronted a uniformed Fulton County police officer, ordering him to the floor at gunpoint, police said. The officer complied to avoid danger for the others inside the bank, but after the robber left the officer chased the gunman on foot, police said.
As the gunman dashed toward the Wal-Mart parking lot behind the bank, he fired at the officer, who returned fire, killing the suspect.
The driver of the getaway car originally eluded officers, but he was captured about an hour after the incident near the Cracker Barrel on Ga. Highway 138 after he ditched the getaway car, police said.
Eric Dewan Green, 26, of Panama City, Fla., faces federal charges of participating in a bank robbery resulting in a fatality, according to the FBI.
The getaway vehicle, a car rented from Panama City, was found at a motel near the bank and is being processed for evidence by the FBI.
Union City Police Chief Mike Isome said the city has had three bank robberies in the past three months and all of the suspects have been apprehended at the scene.
Catching the getaway driver was difficult because of the various descriptions of the suspect which were originally reported to police, Isome said.
“At first we weren’t sure if we were looking for a white guy or a black guy,” Isome said Tuesday afternoon after Green was apprehended.