Suspect still at large after Charlestown bank is robbed

By KATY SAVAGE
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CHARLESTOWN — Police are looking for a suspect following an armed robbery at Claremont Savings Bank in Charlestown on Tuesday afternoon.

Charlestown Police Chief Patrick Connors said a man walked into the bank and wrote a note on a desk before handing it to a teller around 3:30 p.m.. 

Though the man never showed a gun, he indicated in the note that he was armed, Connors said. The man told the teller to put money in a reusable grocery bag he was carrying. 

Connors declined to say how much money was stolen. He also declined to give details of what the note said.

There were about six people working at the bank at the time, Connors said. One customer was also in the building. 

The other people in the bank didn’t know what had happened until it was over.

“It was so quick,” said Connors.

The suspect was described as a white man in his late 20s to early 30s who was 5-foot-6-inches to 5-foot-10-inches tall, weighing 140 to 160 pounds with a short beard and mustache.

Connors said police had a top suspect on Wednesday afternoon, but he was still following through with investigations.

This was the first robbery since Claremont Savings Bank President and CEO Reginald Greene, Jr. started at his position two years ago.

“It was just really scary — especially when you get the information in pieces,” he said. 

The last bank robbery in the area was in December 2015 when Mascoma Savings Bank on Main Street in Charlestown was robbed.

Greene said some of his staff still remember that robbery.

“It has a lasting effect for sure,” he said.

Greene said neighboring banks called him to offer their support.

“The staff handled it really well,” he said. “It’s really about not letting the situation escalate, letting it happen. I think for banks in general, there’s not much else you can do.” 

Greene also declined to specify how much money was taken.

“In the scheme of things, it wasn’t that much,” he said. 

The bank closed for the rest of Tuesday afternoon following the incident. It re-opened on Wednesday.

Anyone with information was asked to contact Chief Connors at (603) 826-5747.