Bank Prexy Had Story for Dessert

President J. C. Hames of Haynes Bank in Cliffside knew nothing about the robbery of his bank until he returned home Tuesday night.

He was on a business trip to Raleigh, accompanied by three other persons.

The radio in the car was not turned on Tuesday morning on the way to Raleigh and Tuesday afternoon on the way back.

Arriving in Cliffside around 6 p.m. President Hames went home. His wife had dinner on the table when he arrived and they sat down to eat.

It was only after dinner was finished the Mrs. Hames told him that the bank had been robbed.

“I guess I enjoyed my dinner much more that way,” Hames said this morning.

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It was business as usual this morning at the Haynes Bank, with all employees, including the president, on hand.

There was a little bit of the unusual in the office at the right of the front door. An FBI representative worked in the office ordinarily occupied by the president of the bank.

There was steady traffic of uniformed officers in and out of the bank, conferring with the FBI agent as they attempted to pin down the last details of the case.

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President Hames said depositors would not lose a penny by the robbery.

“We are doubly insured,” he said.

Each depositor’s account is insured up to $10,000 by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. In addition, the bank has insurance with a private company.

Hames said the FDIC insurance is on the individual accounts and would not apply in case of a robbery unless the loss would endanger the individual accounts of depositors.

He said a representative of the insurance company would be here Friday. “This is the first time this has happened to me and I’m a little green on the procedure,” he said.

Only half of the bank’s staff was on hand when the robbery occurred Tuesday.

Bill Jenkins, cashier; and Mrs. Betty Houser Cromer, bookkeeper and teller were on duty.

Mrs. Jane Hamrick, assistant cashier; and Mrs. Mary M. Jolley, teller, had gone to lunch. Mrs. Hamrick said she heard of the robbery before she left home after lunch. Someone heard about it on the radio and called her.

“I sure picked the right time to go to lunch,” she said.

Citizen Band radios, becoming so popular in this area, saved the day for The Shelby Star reporter on his was to Cliffside Tuesday, minutes after the bank robbery was reported.

First reports were that the Spindale bank was involved, and highway patrol radio confirmed that report. Staffer Bill Noblitt, in a CB radio-equipped car, left immediately for Spindale and was nearly there when county officials discovered the mistake.

Miles Beam, Jr. and Jake Terers of shelby, both CB owners were asked to contact the reporter, and after some delay, were able to convince him he was going to the wrong bank. Fortunately, thanks to the radios, the Daily Star reporter was the second newsman on the scene. The other one came the short distance from Forest City.

Cleveland County law enforcement officers were much in evidence Tuesday as the dragnet spread for the bandit.

Sgt. J. B. Kuykendall of the highway patrol was in charge of the search on roads in and near the area, and had with him all of his men in Cleveland, Rutherford and Polk counties. Roadblocks were set up far inside Cleveland County and northward in Rutherford County.

SBI Agent John Vanderford assisted in the first investigations, and was one of the arresting officers who picked a suspect up in Cowpens, S. C.

Chief C. O. Jones of Boiling Springs manned a roadblock in his area and Deputy Jim McKinney and Constable Alvie Jones were on hand.

Reprinted with permission from The Shelby Daily Star. Copyright owned by The Shelby Star.