Muncie man arrested for attempted bank robbery
MUNCIE, Ind. — A Muncie man's decidedly odd behavior at a southside bank led to his arrest on an attempted robbery charge.
Michael Shaun O'Neal, 44, was taken into custody Thursday afternoon at the First Merchants Bank branch at 2100 S. Madison St.
A clerk told Muncie police O'Neal had approached her and said, "I want your money. I need a duffel bag."
When the clerk said she didn't have a duffel bag, O'Neal "changed the topic" and began speaking with her, sitting at her desk and playing with a coin.
The Muncie man later removed from his pants an object he had apparently intended to look "like an explosive device."
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He had also reportedly signed a note pledging to "pay back the cash I take."
The Muncie man had also allegedly tried to pull down a video monitoring system, and at one point put on a mask.
Bank employees said O'Neal had also been at their workplace "acting strange" on Tuesday, "sitting in the bank for a period of time watching tellers."
O'Neal — being held in the Delaware County jail under a $5,000 bond — already faced two charges, burglary and criminal mischief, in a pair of cases pending in local courts.
His record includes a 2017 conviction for possession of a narcotic drug,
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Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Man's behavior in Muncie bank leads to attempted robbery arrest
