FBI offers $10,000 reward after armed 'Scream Bandit' strikes again

Wearing a mask worn by the killer in the movie 'Scream', the armed robber targets gas stations in Virginia

The FBI is on the hunt for an armed robber, dubbed the “Scream Bandit”, responsible for a string of gas station robberies in Virginia.

A reward of $10,000 is being offered for information about the unidentified man who struck three times in January and February 2019, and three times in the past month.

In all the robberies, the suspect wore all black clothing, black or blue gloves, and a mask as worn by the killer in the 1996 movie Scream.

The subject is armed with a semi-automatic handgun, and described by the FBI as a black male aged between 20 and 30 years old, 5’7 to 5’10 tall, and weighing 160 to 180 lbs.

The crimes took place in Richmond, Henrico County and North Chesterfield. In each one, he hands over a bag demanding the gas station clerks fill it with money.

On his third attempted robbery in February 2019, he was unsuccessful, fleeing the business and firing a shot in the direction of a clerk that followed him.

On 5 January this year, he tripped on his way into the Raceway Gas Station in Richmond, giving clerks time to secure themselves in a locked room. He fled the store and 25 minutes later he robbed a BP Gas Station in Henrico County.

He struck again on 26 January at Goldy’s Gas Station in Richmond. On this occasion, while store clerks were obeying his demands, he went behind the counter and flipped over the register, taking additional money from underneath it.

The suspect should be considered armed and dangerous, police say.