He was just happy to see her, but the teller forked over the cash anyway
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lock ‘im up
A man facing homelessness who held up a bank with a banana, stealing more than £1,000 before handing himself in to police, has been jailed for 14 months.Laurence James Vonderdell threatened a cashier at a Barclays branch in Bournemouth with the fruit, which he covered with a plastic bag, and shouted “This is a stick-up, give me the cash”.
[Love this part]:
Vonderdell approached nearby police officers after the incident and told them he had committed an armed robbery and “wanted to be arrested” but was told to go to a local police station, the court heard.
Bournemouth Crown Court heard how the man, who had recently been evicted from his flat, decided to rob the bank to get arrested so he would “have a roof over his head”.
He reportedly walked more than two miles with £1,200 in £20 notes from the crime to get to Bournemouth police station, where he was detained.
Detective Constable Andy Hale, of Bournemouth CID, said: "Even though the defendant handed himself in shortly after this incident and the cash was recovered, this must still have been a very distressing incident for the cashier involved."
Although the use of a banana was unusual, it is not the first time a piece of fruit has been used in a robbery in recent months.
In Israel, a man is facing charges for stealing 30000 Israeli shekels (£6,637) after threatening a bank employee with a “grenade” that was actually an avocado painted black.
Of course, had the teller been properly trained,, Barclay’s money would have been safe
