A school was locked down in Commerce City for more than five hours and area residents urged not to leave their homes Monday as police looked from house to house for a bank robber.
About 2:30 p.m. police were called to Key Bank, 6565 E. 73rd Ave., on a robbery.
The robber handed a teller a note demanding money or “she would be shot,” police said in a news release. No weapon was seen.
The robber fled the bank in a white sport utility vehicle, police said.
Officers found a white Chevy Blazer, believed to be the suspect vehicle, parked near East 74th Avenue and Oneida Drive, and authorities searched the area for the robber.
Nearby Hanson Elementary School was locked down and police set up a search area from East 73rd Avenue to East 75th Place and Oneida Street to Quebec Street.
Police ended the lockdown, which affected about 390 students at the K-8 school, at 7:50 p.m., said Sgt. Joe Sandoval.
“Most of the parents were pretty good about it when they realized we were doing it for their children’s safety,” Sandoval said.
The house-to-house search, of about 30 apartments, came up empty, Sandoval said.
Staff writer Kieran Nicholson can be reached at 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
