Police shut down Interstate 270 in Maryland Tuesday morning to apprehend three bank robbery suspects.
Rockville police officers were called to the Wells Fargo Bank at 404 King Farm Road just after 10 a.m.
Two men armed with handguns entered, ordered customers and employees down on the floor, demanded money and took cash, Montgomery County police said. The third suspect was waiting in a silver Kia SUV, which all three suspects used to flee the bank.
With help from Maryland State Police, southbound I-270 was closed just north of the split, near Tuckerman Lane, as police searched vehicles with guns drawn. With assistance from a Prince George's County police helicopter, officers located the SUV on the interstate.
"Stopping traffic on an interstate for a bank robbery, for our agency, is extraordinary and unusual," Montgomery County police Capt. Paul Starks said. "Today it was the right decision."
After locating the SUV and taking the suspects into custody, officers found a handgun in the vehicle, police said. They found money from the robbery in a dump truck. The suspects attempted to throw the money into the adjacent truck once they realized they'd been found, police said.
One of the suspects had more than $7,000 in his sock.
Police also searched the SUV for the second handgun.
Footage from Chopper4 showed the three suspects handcuffed along the interstate's barrier. They have been identified as 55-year-old Earl Kenney, 40-year-old Michael Heard and 20-year-old Ricko Ford, all of Maryland.
Each is charged with armed robbery and use of a handgun in a violent crime.
Ford waited in the car as a lookout. His father and pregnant girlfriend, who is due next month, say he is mentally challenged and was manipulated by the other men. He will undergo an evaluation to see if he is competent to stand trial.
WOW "@Scott_Ferrebee: @nbcwashington @darcyspencer @WTOP police with guns drawn on I-270. pic.twitter.com/5aAzQF2YTY" #BREAKINGNEWS — Darcy Spencer (@darcyspencer) March 11, 2014
