BoK Security Guard Chases Down ATM Skimmer Suspects

<p>Two suspects are in custody following a shooting in the parking lots of Penn Square Mall and 50 Penn Place, in northwest Oklahoma City, Thursday morning.</p>

Thursday, November 30th 2017, 11:29 am

By: News 9


Two suspects are in custody following a chase through the parking lots of Penn Square Mall and 50 Penn Place, in northwest Oklahoma City, Thursday morning.

Police say the two men were attempting to retrieve a credit card skimming device at an ATM at the Bank of Oklahoma Branch, located near NW Expressway and N. Penn Avenue. A security guard at the bank, who happens to be a retired Midwest City police officer, noticed the suspicious activity and confronted the suspects before a car chase ensued.

The suspects were identified as 34-year-old Cosmin Chelarescu and 40-year-old Vasile Gheti.

The bank employee chased Chelarescu and Gheti through the parking lots of Penn Square Mall and 50 Penn Place, before accidentally firing a shot at the suspects’ vehicle. No injuries have been reported, but police say the driver’s side window of the suspects’ vehicle was shot out. Officer Megan Morgan explains, “At some point during that contact, there was an accidental discharge by the security guard’s weapon. Fortunately nobody was injured.”

The driver was taken into custody in the parking lot of 50 Penn Place, but the passenger managed to get away on foot. Police set up a perimeter in the area while they searched for the second suspect, with the assistance of Air One and K9 units. After about an hour, officers located the second suspect hiding in a densely wooded area behind some homes, along N. Virginia Avenue and I-44.

The bank employee has not been identified at this time. Investigators are still trying to determine how long the skimmer was attached to the ATM, and how many people may have been affected.

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