Bank Robber Runs into Street Throwing Cash in the Air & Yelling 'Merry Christmas!'
65-year-old David Oliver arrested in Colorado Springs following robbery
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A bank robber successfully pulled off a heist in Colorado Springs, Colo., only to run out of the building and into the streets where he threw the cash in the air while yelling "Merry Christmas!"
The man reportedly stole thousands from a downtown bank, with witnesses saying he immediately ran outside while throwing wads of cash into the air as stunned onlookers picked up the money.
An eyewitness told local news station KKTV that the man, identified by police as 65-year-old David Oliver, left the bank and shouted the holiday wishes while he threw money into the air.
He then went to a nearby Starbucks where he sat down and waited to be arrested.
Police said Oliver was arrested without conflict and no weapon was found on his person.
However, the suspect had reportedly claimed to have a weapon while robbing the nearby Academy Bank.
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Colorado Springs police Sgt. Jim Jeffcoat did not confirm to The Denver Post that money was thrown into the air or that the man yelled “Merry Christmas.”
The exact amount of money stolen remains undisclosed.
Jeffcoat told reporters that thousands of dollars remain missing, however.
One witness, Dion Pascale, told 11 News about the ordeal as it unfolded – and it had a more festive spin than they were expecting.
As he walked out of the bank and onto the street, the 65-year-old robber "started throwing money out of the bag and then said Merry Christmas" according to Pascale.
"He robbed the bank, came out, threw the money all over the place," Pascale added.
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David Oliver allegedly threatened employees of the Academy Bank at 1 South Tejon Street with a weapon.
He then left the bank with an undisclosed amount of cash and proceeded to fill the streets with festive joy, according to the Colorado Springs police blotter.
Bystanders initially looked on in awe at the strange robbery-come-giveaway.
However, it appears that the people of Colorado Springs are kind-spirited: they eventually picked the money up off the street and took it back into the bank.
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Police arrested Oliver at the Starbucks coffee shop next door without conflict, police said.
A Starbucks manager said Oliver didn’t order a drink and nobody in the store seemed to pay him any mind.
Following the bank robbery, Colorado Springs Police said he was booked into the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center.
