Robbery Eyewitness Recounts 'Surreal' Experience at Seffner Credit Union

As detectives seek the public’s help in determining , one customer is stepping up to say she had an eyewitness view of the theft unfolding.

The customer, who asked not to be identified, at least not until the thief is caught, said she was the only person in the credit union lobby, other than the two tellers behind the counter — and the robber.

The eyewitness said she had just finished opening a bank account for an exchange student from France when she stepped in line to make a deposit.

“I was approaching the teller and he [the robber] was behind me," she said. "The teller told him, politely, that she would be right with him. He said, ‘I forgot something,’ and he walked out. I thought he probably forgot his deposit slip in the car.”

Not quite.

While the other teller was counting money, her line closed to customers, “he came back in and walked right up to her,” the eyewitness said. “I was at the center window and he was to my left. The teller who was helping me said to him, ‘Sir, I’ll help you in a second.’ I kind of glared at him, thinking, 'How rude! You can’t even wait for me to finish my transaction?' ”

Then “I saw the teller handing him a lot of money and I thought, ‘He must be cashing a really big check,’ ” the eyewitness said. “He started stuffing the money in his pockets and he turned around and walked out really quickly."

Moments later, she added, "the teller said, 'I’ve been robbed.' ”

According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s report, the robber entered the Railroad & Industrial Federal Credit Union at 1209 North Kingsway Road at around 11:12 a.m. April 30 and presented a teller with a note demanding cash. He fled with an undisclosed amount of money.

The eyewitness said she read and agreed with the assessment reported. “The description you have is my description,” she said. “He was a clean-cut, business-looking guy.”

Detectives described the thief as a white man in his mid-30s, between 5-foot-8 and 5-foot-10, with short, cropped, blondish hair. He was clean-shaven and wore prescription glasses, a white dress shirt, a navy blue or black tie, dark-colored pants and black shoes.

The eyewitness said she remained calm under the circumstances, calling it a “surreal” experience.

“I was fine until the deputy said to me, 'Ma’m, you’re really lucky he didn’t decide to take a hostage.' I thought, ‘That’s true, I was the only one in the lobby, I was standing right next to the guy.”

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Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff's office at 813-247-8200. To be eligible for a cash reward call Crime Stoppers at 800-873-TIPS (8477), report anonymously online at crimestopperstb.com or text "CSTB plus your tip" to C-R-I-M-E-S (274637).