FBI: Suspects rob First Bank in Vass with sawed-off shotgun

VASS, NC (WTVD) -- The FBI is helping the Vass Police Department look for a pair of armed robbers.

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According to the FBI, the robbery happened Thursday morning about 11 when two men with bandannas draped over their faces stormed into the First Bank on Seaboard Drive.

In the photos, one suspect can be seen waving around a sawed-off shotgun as he demanded money from the teller.

The photos also show a second suspect holding the front door, presumably as a lookout to make sure no one else was coming.

The FBI said the two ran out of the bank toward the woods where K-9 lost their scent, leaving authorities to believe there may have been some sort of getaway car involved. The two made off with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Next door, Johnny Perhealth's hardware store was boarded up after he said it was broken into last week. He doesn't think the two crimes are connected, but the trend is concerning.

"The only thing that bothers me about this around here that somebody is probably going to get killed. Some innocent person, a bystander you know. Before, these people robbed banks; they didn't have guns, now they're bringing in pistols, sawed-off shotguns, you know. All I can say is, they need to catch them," Perhealth said.

The Vass Police Department told ABC11 that the FBI stepped in per normal protocol.

If you have any information to identify the suspects or you saw anything suspicious around the area of the bank, call FBI Charlotte 704-672-6100.