$20,000 BANK ROBBER REWARD

The FBI and Gurnee Illinois Police announced a reward of up to $20,000  for information leading to identification and arrest of the man who shot at police and robbed the Community Trust Credit Union.

The FBI is offering the reward “primarily because of the violent nature of the crime,” said Ross Rice, spokesman from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

“We’re hoping (the reward) attracts media and the public’s attention,” Rice said.

Witnesses described the bandit as an black man, 6 feet to 6-feet, 2-inches tall. The suspect, who acted alone in the Jan. 28, 2010 robbery, was a wearing all black clothing and a mask.

Authorities said the man forced entry at 7 p.m. when the credit union on Route 41 in Gurnee was closing. He used plastic zip ties to bind the hands of employees.

After he was unable to open the credit union vault, he fled and spotted an officer who was responding to the robbery, according to authorities. He shot at the officer before running behind a nearby building and possibly to a waiting vehicle. The officer was not injured, the news release stated.

Anyone with information is asked call the FBI at (312) 421-6700.