Suspect in savings bank robbery caught

Police reveal a toy gun the suspect allegedly used in the robbery of MG Community Credit Cooperatives in southern Seoul, Sunday. / Yonhap

By Chung Ah-young

A man suspected of robbing a bank in southern Seoul has been captured, police said Sunday.

Seocho Police Station said that it is questioning a 53-year-old man surnamed Choi who was apprehended in Suseo-dong, southern Seoul. Choi is suspected of taking 24 million won in cash from a branch of the MG Community Credit Cooperatives in Jamwon-dong at 12:20 p.m. on July 20, after threatening workers with a “fake” firearm, which police later said was a toy gun. After robbing the bank, the suspect made his getaway on a scooter.

“We captured him after analyzing the footage of security cameras, installed around the district where he drove his scooter after robbing the bank,” a police officer said.

Admitting the robbery, the suspect told police that he took the money from the bank to repay a debt of 50 million won. Among 24 million won, he used 21.5 million won in settling the debt and used 2.5 million won for gambling, police said.

Police said, however, that the firearm was found to be a “toy gun” after seizing a helmet, a mask and the toy gun, which were used in the crime, from his hideout.

Police will request an arrest warrant against him for the robbery.

The same bank was robbed 21 years ago but police said the incident was not perpetrated by the same suspect.