Patton bank robber dressed like highway worker, deputy says

PATTON, Mo. -- The man who robbed a Patton bank at gunpoint Thursday could be a prior offender, said Leo McElrath, chief deputy of the Bollinger County Sheriff's Department.

The bank robbery was reported at 9:45 a.m., according to Misty Stevens, a dispatcher with the sheriff's department, who also notified police in Madison, Perry and Cape Girardeau counties. Officers from the FBI also responded.

Bank employees said the robber weighed between 250 and 270 pounds and wore a ski mask, plaid shirt, khaki pants and a bright orange vest, similar to those worn by highway workers. He also held a black revolver.

McElrath said the orange vest worn by the suspect showed he took into account the recent road construction on Highway 72, knowing passers-by would assume he worked for the highway department.

"He did his research," McElrath said.

McElrath said a witness reported seeing the suspect as he parked his vehicle on a side road off Highway 51 and walked across a field toward Security Bank and Trust in Patton, at the junction of highways 51 and 72. Bank employees said the suspect left through the front door and took off on foot traveling north.

McElrath said the highway patrol's tracking dog tracked the suspect to where he left the scene in a gray or silver car.

The suspect is considered armed and dangerous. Any information should be reported to the Bollinger County Sheriff's Department at 573-238-2633.