Search 'ongoing' for Wihdat bank robbery suspect

AMMAN — Police on Thursday said search was ongoing for the suspect who robbed a bank at gunpoint in Amman’s Wihdat neighbourhood on Wednesday morning.

The police also said that they have beefed up their security measures at local banks following Wednesday’s and Monday’s robberies of two bank branches in the capital, Public Security Department (PSD) Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi said.

“We are still searching for the suspect and have taken immediate measure in cooperation with the banks to ensure the protection of these financial entities,” Sartawi told The Jordan Times.

On Monday, Etihad Bank was robbed at gunpoint by a man who managed to escape with JD98,000 before being arrested by authorities almost 90 minutes later. All the cash that was stolen was retrieved by the authorities.

Two days later, Societe Generale Bank Jordan was robbed at gunpoint by a hooded man who managed to escape with JD76,000 in cash.

No one was injured in any of the bank robberies.

Meanwhile, Sartawi added that the PSD will “adopt new measures in cooperation with the banks to ensure its safety”. “We are currently examining all banks and studying the weak spots to ensure there are no security breaches,” the police official said.

He added that future measures “will follow to ensure that such incidents will hopefully not be repeated”.