VIRGINIA BEACH — “Don’t make me hurt anyone,” an accused bank robber said to a Virginia Beach clerk before he allegedly shot his handgun into the building’s ceiling and took off with the money, according to court documents.
But he didn’t make it very far. Police arrested the alleged robber, 40-year-old Marquis Larosa Buckley, and his accused accomplice, 34-year-old Austin Lee Howard, about six miles away from the PNC Bank they are charged with robbing.
On Oct. 13, Buckley — disguised in a wig and sunglasses — went into the bank, located at 2422 Princess Anne Road, armed with a handgun and an item that looked like an explosive device. He allegedly demanded money from the clerk before throwing the fake device onto the floor and firing his gun into the ceiling once, according to court documents filed in Virginia Beach Circuit Court.
Then, he allegedly ran.
The Virginia Beach Police Department began their search and discovered the pair of accused robbers driving on Roundhill Drive in a maroon 2010 Nissan Maxima. Howard was in the driver’s seat, and Buckley was riding passenger, court documents state.
When police stopped the car Buckley fled the scene on foot. An officer arrested Howard while another apprehended Buckley, court documents allege.
Police questioned Buckley, who confessed to the bank robbery and to making the fake explosive device that he allegedly threw on the floor. He told police that he’d left the robbery materials in the car, and when they searched it officers found the wig, sunglasses, tape, a gun with ammunition, a glow stick wrapper and newspaper, court documents state.
Howard, of the 600 block of Aubrey Drive in Virginia Beach, was charged with two counts of robbery, two counts of use of a gun and conspiracy. He’s scheduled to appear in Virginia Beach General District Court for a preliminary hearing on Dec. 14.
Buckley, of Brunswick, Ga., is charged with two counts of robbery, two counts of using a gun, conspiracy, an explosive hoax, entering a bank armed to commit larceny and being a violent felony in possession of a weapon in connection to the Oct. 13 incident.
Buckley is also charged with three counts of robbery, three counts of using a gun, entering a bank armed to commit larceny, an explosive hoax, threatening to bomb and being a violet felon in possession of a weapon in connection to an Oct. 4 robbery.
According to police, Buckley allegedly went into the Fulton Bank, located at 3545 Dam Neck Road, showed a gun and stole an “undisclosed amount” of money. He left the bank and fled toward Princess Anne Road.
Buckley is accused of leaving an object behind in the bank, which led the Virginia Beach Police Department to send their bomb squad team to the scene; however, the object was determined not to be a threat.
Buckley is scheduled to appear in Virginia Beach General District Court for a preliminary hearing on charges for both robberies.
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