SAVANNAH, Ga. () — After a daring armed robbery at the Bank of America on Victory Drive, one local man is feeling fortunate to have escaped harm.
Allen Larkin was parked at a nearby business, focused on sending a work email from his phone, when he noticed a masked individual approaching. Instinctively, he locked his car door.
Unbeknownst to him, a bank heist had just unfolded, and he was about to come face-to-face with the fleeing suspect.
“I saw a gun in his hand as he started banging on the window and shouting at me,” Larkin recounted.
The suspect, identified as 37-year-old Eric Williams, had allegedly just exited the Bank of America with a hefty sum of cash. In his attempt to escape, police reported that Williams was desperately searching for a getaway vehicle.
Larkin explained that Williams held him at gunpoint, demanding he leave his car. Fortunately, Larkin managed to flee to a nearby building for safety. It was only later that he realized the key to his car was still in his pocket, preventing Williams from taking off with his vehicle.
Investigators said Williams tried to steal another car but wasn’t successful. Instead, he ran, but police caught up with him. Larkin said he was told that his shirt was a clue for officers to know they got the right guy.
“Someone with forensics told me that the guy actually had bloody knuckles… and they were pretty sure the blood on my shirt was his,” Larkin said.
Larkin told , he’s still processing what happened. He was overcome with emotion when explaining how thankful he was to be alive.
“The first thing I did was call my girlfriend, and I just prefaced this with… you know that I’m okay. I was just thinking that I just want to make sure I get back to them. That was most important to me,” Larkin said. “I’m just blessed to be here.”
Larkin is back home with his girlfriend and her daughter. He told that he’s holding them extra tight.
Williams has been arrested and charged with felony armed robbery.
