On the lam: Island bank robbery still at large

A lone man robbed the Regions Bank on Pope Avenue late Friday morning, taking an undisclosed amount of cash, the FBI reported.

No one was hurt during the robbery and the suspect remains at large.

Just before 11 a.m., the man entered the bank and presented a teller with a note demanding money, FBI Special Agent Dave Calore said.

Although the man indicated he was carrying a weapon, no one in the bank reported seeing one, Calore said.

The man fled after taking the money, but Calore said it is unknown which direction he went.

Calore described the suspect as a "skinny" black male, weighing less than 160 pounds and shorter than 6 feet.

At the time of the robbery, Calore said the suspect was wearing a baseball hat, a white nylon jogging jacket with no hood, dark blue jeans and sneakers.

He said the man could be in his late twenties to early forties.

The bank's security cameras captured blurry images of the man.

"The pictures aren't as good as I'd like, but someone may recognize his clothing," Calore said.

Although Regions Bank's Ridgeland branch was robbed earlier this year, Calore said he knew of no evidence connecting that incident to Friday's robbery.

Tamara Augustine, market president for Regions Bank on Hilton Head and in Bluffton, said a few employees were in the bank during the robbery, and that she believes some customers were in the building as well.

"We're very proud of the way our employees handled it," she said. "They followed procedure and no one was hurt."

Neither the FBI nor Regions Bank officials could disclose the amount of money stolen.

Regions Bank closed early Friday, but will resume normal hours Monday, bank officials said.

The FBI's Hilton Head branch is handling the case because bank robberies are federal crimes.

A reward is offered for information about the suspect.