NW Indiana bank robber captured within 45 minutes at nearby store

A man who robbed a bank in northwest Indiana tried to escape on foot, but didn’t get far before police closed in Tuesday morning.

The PNC Bank branch at 301 W. U.S. 20 in the Marquette Mall in Michigan City was robbed about 10:44 a.m., according to Michigan City police. Officers responded and learned the robber had run away, and police immediately began broadcasting information about his description and direction of travel.

Michigan City officers and detectives, LaPorte County sheriff’s deputies and the Trail Creek Town Marshall took part in the search until a detective saw the suspect in a parking lot of a strip mall about two blocks away in the 4300 block of Franklin Street.

The suspect went into one of the stores but a detective and a sheriff’s deputy “worked together to covertly locate the suspect” and called for assistance. Derrick Richardson, 40, was taken into custody without incident, police said.

He faces a preliminary charge of robbery pending a probable cause hearing.

Michigan City Police Chief Mark Swistek said in a statement he “was very pleased that the suspect was apprehended within 45 minutes from the initial dispatch” and applauded the teamwork shown by all responding agencies.

Anyone with crime information should call the crime tip hotline at (219) 873-1488.