Country Club Hills Man Charged in local TCF Bank Robbery

The man Oak Lawn police found hiding on the roof of a local bank has been charged with one felony count of bank robbery.

A federal judge denied bail late Friday afternoon for Bryant C. Paschal, 41, of Country Club Hills.

Police surrounded the building after a witness told them that Paschal had climbed a tree and jumped on to the building’s roof. Traffic was stopped for 30 minutes on Cicero Avenue while the helped police bring Paschal down from the roof on a ladder, Kaufman said.

The FBI’s Violent Crimes Unit is now handling the investigation.

According to the federal criminal complaint, Paschal walked into the TCF Bank, pulled out a handgun and began waving it around. The gun was later determined to be an Airsoft pellet gun.

Wearing a winter jacket and a covering over his mouth, Paschal pointed the gun at bank employees and said, “Give me all your money.” He told a teller to start emptying the drawer and not to press the alarm or give him bait money, the complaint said.

The FBI said that Paschal approached another teller and ordered him or her to open the drawer. When the teller told Paschal that the window didn't have a drawer, he saw a key in another drawer and told that teller to give him the money from that one.

“The teller provided Paschal with bait money that was bounded together with a $5,000 money band," the complaint said. "Paschal ripped the band off and removed the bait bills and threw the anti-theft device on the counter."

After Paschal fled the scene, a witness saw him climb a tree and ascend the roof of the bank. The witness went to the front door of TCF bank but could not get in because the doors were locked. Police said when they arrived on the scene, the witness told police about the man hiding on the roof.

Police said Paschal at first ignored their orders to get off the roof. When he eventually did, they found the pellet gun and a black bag containing $5,147.

After his arrest, police said that Paschal admitted to robbing the bank. He told police that he had scouted the place the previous week, and that he had slept on the roof the night before the robbery.

Bank employees identified Paschal as the man who robbed the bank through a window at the scene on Friday.

He was charged with one felony count of bank robbery, a crime punishable of up to 20 years incarceration. His next scheduled court date is on Monday.