Las Vegas police arrest suspect in WestStar Credit Union robbery

A photo of robbery suspect William Etheridge who was arrested by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department shortly after stealing cash from the WestStar Federal Credit Union. (Photo provided by LVMPD)

By Anna Cui
EBC Las Vegas Bureau
Eagle News Service

LAS Vegas, USA (Eagle News) — The WestStar Federal Credit Union of Las Vegas Nevada was robbed at 5:18 PM local time, Tuesday, July 25, by a man armed with a semi-automatic handgun who later kidnapped three people including a bank teller, Las Vegas police said

The suspect, who was identified by the police as William Etheridge, was later arrested by the police while he was trying to escape.

Police Sgt. Steve Junge of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) said Etheridge robbed several of the tellers on duty, taking all the cash from their drawers, after which he ordered one of the male tellers to leave the bank with him.

Out in the parking lot, the suspect approached a couple still in their vehicle, and by threatening them at gunpoint, forced them to give him and the bank teller a ride, effectively escalating the incident to include the kidnapping of all three people.

Based on the police investigation, Etheridge then forced the couple to drive him Southbound on Las Vegas Blvd, where he finally got out of the vehicle and went inside the Harley Davidson Dealership.

The kidnapped victims got away as the suspect entered the dealership, and they then immediately called Las Vegas Metro Police Department.

The police then took the suspect in custody without incident while he was still at Harvey Davidson dealership, trying to buy a motorcycle with the stolen money.

The police had not yet given the amount of cash that the suspect had stolen from the bank. (EBC Las Vegas Bureau, Eagle News Service)