A police explosives team rushed to the scene of an attempted bank robbery in Grassy Park on Friday after a woman allegedly walked into a bank, handed a teller a note declaring she had a bomb in a box and demanded money.
But the box was empty and the woman was arrested.
Police spokesperson Billy Jones said the suspected bomb turned out to be nothing more than an empty shoe box.
The woman, who is from the Grassy Park area, apparently walked into First National Bank in Victoria Road holding a parcel and handed a note to a teller that read: "I have a bomb in the package and if you don't comply with my demands you must bear the consequences."
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| 'I have a bomb in the package' |
The note also instructed the teller to fill a packet with R100 and R200 notes.
The teller complied with the instructions and the woman took the money and walked towards the door leaving the box on the floor.
Before she could leave she was confronted by the bank manager who held her and called security staff to evacuate the rest of the staff. The police were called in.
Jones said the explosives team's sniffer dogs had not detected any explosive substances and the box was empty.
During initial questioning, the woman allegedly told police that she had been hijacked and her child was being held hostage. She claimed the hostage takers had forced her to rob the bank.
But Jones said that police had visited the woman's house and all her children were at home.
She was taken to Grassy Park police station for questioning but by Friday afternoon had not been formally charged.
- This article was originally published on page 2 of Cape Argus on June 05, 2004
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