A Columbus man who faces federal bank robbery charges is accused of giving a teller a note about having a bomb and slapping another.
Rooble Adan, 31, is charged with bank robbery in the U.S. District Court in Columbus.
According to court records, Adan robbed the Chase Bank located at 5681 Cleveland Ave., on the city’s Northeast Side, on Oct. 8.
Court records say Adan walked into the bank shortly before 9 a.m. that morning and gave a financial advisor a handwritten note demanding money.
The note, a photo of which was included in court records, said there was a bomb in Adan’s backpack and a bomb on the building, court records say. Adan demanded $100,000 in cash and another $1 million to be wired to another account.
Court records say the note referenced Allah and “infidels,” telling the bank employee there were 10 seconds to meet his demands.
The bank employee took the note to a teller, at which point Adan smacked a female teller in the face and began grabbing money from the till drawers, according to court records.
More than $2,900 was taken in the robbery, court records say.
A bank customer called 911 after Adan had walked out of the bank, court records say. A Columbus police officer was in the area and saw Adan leaving the bank. The money stolen from the bank was in his possession, court records say.
During an attempted interview, Adan began making “spontaneous utterances” about wanting a Quran and to pray, court records say. Adan also said he had been in his truck reading the Quran and did not know about the bank robbery.
Court records say Adan is being held in custody pending future hearings in his case.
Reporter Bethany Bruner can be reached at bbruner@gannett.com or on Bluesky at @bethanybruner.dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus man accused of robbing Northeast Side bank, giving teller note about a bomb
Reporting by Bethany Bruner, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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