WATERBURY, Conn. – State police said a violent bank robbery and an accident that shut down Route 8 in Waterbury on Wednesday were linked.
Police had one person in custody and were searching for another following an accident, which occurred minutes after a bank robbery in which a bystander was shot.
Police said the robbery occurred shortly after 11 a.m. at a Webster Bank on Highland Avenue.
Lt. Fernando Spagnolo said one person, thought to be a customer, was shot in the leg during the robbery and sent to a local hospital with what were described as non-life threatening injuries. The suspect fled, but Spagnolo could not say whether he got away with any money.
Seven schools in the area were locked down as a precaution because the robber was armed.
State police Lt. J. Paul Vance said the accident on Route 8 involved a car matching a description of one that sped from the robbery scene.
Police were searching for one man who fled from the car, and had another in custody. TV video from the accident scene showed what appeared to be a red tarp draped over the driver's side of the car, which was heavily damaged in the accident.
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