A Georgia man accused of robbing a bank in Shelby Township killed himself during a standoff with police in Illinois.
Police said that at 10:36 a.m. on Thursday, March 7, 2024, a man walked into a Bank of America bank on 23 Mile Road in Shelby Township and gave a note to the teller demanding money and then ran away from the bank. When police arrived at the bank, he was already gone and they were not able to find him.
Video footage from different locations in Shelby Township helped officers discover that once the man ran away from the bank, he got on a motorized scooter, which he had parked nearby. He drove the scooter to a semi truck and then drove away.
Investigators tracked the semi truck to a trucking company in Illinois. The bank robbery suspect was then identified as a 33-year-old man from Georgia. They tracked him to Effingham, Illinois, where investigators requested help from the Effingham Police Department.
Effingham police found the 33-year-old man and the semi truck at a TA Travel Center truck stop. Police said he barricaded himself inside the semi truck with a gun. Police said they “disabled” the semi truck to stop him from driving away.
The Effingham County Sheriff’s Department and the Illinois State Police SWAT Team and Crisis Negotiating Team were called to the scene. After a nearly 8-hour standoff, the 33-year-old man killed himself.