PNC Bank robbed in broad daylight

by Tom Beck and Carla Robinson
Posted 5/25/22

The PNC Bank at the corner of Germantown Avenue and Gravers Lane in Chestnut Hill was robbed at gunpoint on Wednesday in the early afternoon, while the sidewalk eateries nearby were full of people sitting outside and enjoying their lunch. 

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PNC Bank robbed in broad daylight

Posted

The PNC Bank at the corner of Germantown Avenue and Gravers Lane in Chestnut Hill was robbed at gunpoint on Wednesday in the early afternoon, while the sidewalk eateries nearby were full of people sitting outside and enjoying their lunch. 

The suspect, who made off with between $5,000 and $6,000, entered the bank in a face mask and hair wrap, according to the Philadelphia Police Department. He fled the scene in a getaway car that was waiting outside. Police said they do not know which way he and his accomplice went. 

The suspect is described as a Black male in his early 20s. No injuries were reported, and the robbery is under active investigation with the Northwest Detective Division.

The gunman must have been stealthy because several people who were on the avenue at the time did not notice anything unusual. 

Ed Cornly, who mans the security shack at the parking lot next door, said his younger colleague was on duty at the time the robbery happened and did not notice anything out of the ordinary. 

“But he did say he was on the phone, arguing with his brother,” Cornly said. “So he may have been distracted.”

The same was true of several people who were enjoying a convivial lunch on the sidewalk at Iron Hill Brewery, which is right above the bank. 

“We’ve been here quite a while and we didn’t notice anything,” they said. 

This is the third armed robbery in Chestnut Hill in the past six months. On Christmas Day, a gunman held up Yu Hsiang Garden, a popular Chinese Restaurant that was located on Germantown Avenue near Mermaid Lane that has since been closed. Two weeks before that event, the CVS one block away was also robbed of $5,000 by a man who threatened to have a gun. 

That same day, a man who claimed he had a gun tried to rob The Fresh Market, which is located further up the Avenue. He was interrupted by a customer and fled before making off with any money.