A Great Lakes robbery led to the lockdown of the Naval Station. Friday afternoon, a bank robbery took place at Great Lakes Credit Union in North Chicago.
According to employees and clients, who were present, a man wearing a black ski mask, white t-shirt, and blue jeans, pulled out a knife and demanded money. The man also displayed a silver handgun.
He took an undisclosed amount of money and fled the scene on foot. Police officers quickly arrived in Great Lakes Credit Union and began their investigation.
As the authorities searched for answers, a lockdown was put in place for nearby housing, Burkey Mall, child care centers in the area, and the Naval Station Great Lakes.
Naval Station Great Lakes, which has 1,153 buildings, is situated on 1,628 acres in Lake County, Illinois and is the home of the United States Navy only boot camp. The naval station locked all its gates, and officials sent out an alert via social media for personnel to:
“RUN, HIDE, FIGHT, TAKE IMMEDIATE COVER IN NEAREST BUILDING.”
The lockdown was cleared at 3:08 p.m. and gates were reopened, according to the Great Lakes Naval Station Twitter account. Using a police dog, law enforcers were rapidly able to track the criminal, who was hiding in a nearby building.
According to Sgt. Freddrick Diez, of the North Chicago Police Department, police gave the suspect a chance to surrender, and after a few minutes he did. Police recovered the pocket knife at the scene as well as the money.
Charges are pending against the suspect and could be filed by the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office this weekend. Diez added:
“This was a magnificent display of police resources, tactics, and community assistance.”
Vikki Kaiser, President and CEO of Great Lakes Credit Union, released a statement that read:
“Thankfully, no one was injured. Our primary concern is for the safety and well-being of our employees and members.”
Law enforcement handled the situation in a very efficient way, according to experts.
