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Man Robs Bank With Fake Bomb Threat

MIAMI (CBS4) - Miami-Dade Police have determined that the alleged bomb left at a Miami Bank of America by a robber Friday morning was a fake.

Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating the robbery at the Bank of America branch at 9898 SW 40th Street in Miami that resulted in the lock down of a nearby elementary school and the evacuation of a strip mall.

According to FBI Spokesman Michael Leverock, the robber walked into the bank at about 10:30 a.m.  wearing white gauze over the left side of his face. He went to a manager and said he wanted to open an account, when they approached a cubicle he announced that he intended to rob the bank and that he had a bomb set to go off in an hour. He also indicated he could detonate it by remote control as he took a box out of a bag and set it down.

The robber told the manager to fill a bag with cash, which he did, and the man left the bank.

Leverock said they treated the situation as a serious bomb threat and that warned the public that it was not safe to approach the location. As a precaution the nearby strip mall was evacuated.

If you have any information about the identity of the robber, call the FBI at 305-944-9101, or CrimeStoppers at 305-471-TIPS (8477).

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