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I was on my way to the bank around 9:30 a.m. The traffic on the road caused me to arrive later than I planned. As I entered the bank and looked around, I realized that I would have to stand in line for the entire day. There were only two clerks on duty and a long line of customers. After I stood there for about an hour, my feet started to hurt. A male customer, who was third in line, was on his phone, texting and taking notice of his surroundings. It was his time to approach the clerk. He walked toward her, handed her a piece of paper, and then jumped over the counter. Another male jumped over from another direction. They held the clerk at gunpoint while they demanded cash.

An elderly woman who could barely walk, as she had a cane, dropped the cane and started running. I did not know that someone walking with a stick could run that fast. She ended up in the road.

I later learned that the manager was in her office, watching what was happening on the monitor. She called the police, closed the door of the main entrance where they stored the cash, closed her office door, and then placed the key in her shoe. She was trembling. Only flashing lights signaled to the staff that the police had arrived.

The police ran into the building, guns drawn, and we heard shots. Moments later, someone was crying in the staff main office. I found out that it was one of the robbers after he got shot. He had crawled into the office and tried to hide. The police went in, handcuffed him, and left him there, and then chased the other robber. He also had a backpack on his back. Maybe he had escaped with a portion of the cash. That man was not lucky, because citizens chased him. He dropped the bag and ran; the citizens caught him and handed him over to the police. He was crying for his mother, but no one paid him any attention. He was handcuffed and placed into the police vehicle. His friend died on the way to the hospital. It was a sad day for those who experienced what happened.
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Sandra Allen hails from the island of Jamaica, West Indies, and currently studies at the Brooklyn Public Library’s Eastern Parkway Adult Learning Center. Considering herself assiduous and consistent, she has a passion for writing and accounting, and her ultimate goal is to have a positive influence on those around her. Sandra Allen’s tutor is Kenneth Swaby, and the center manager is Donna Alleyne.