Police got a tip that a suspect, 31-year-old Adrian Wiggins, was hidingout at the Days Inn on Highway 70 in Raleigh near the Garner line. PoliceS.W.A.T. teams were on the scene for several hours.
The third floor of the hotel was cordoned off while officers tried todetermine if the man in the hotel was the one they were seeking. WhenS.W.A.T. officers entered the room, Captain R.E. Deaton told WRAL TV5 theman was not there.
According to Sgt. Charles Bryant, some leads were generated by thediscovery of personal belongings, inparticular, some identification.
Police say Wiggins is from Raleigh and has an extensive criminalrecord, including armed robbery charges. He went to jail most recently in1993.
Wednesday's robbery took place at about 4 p.m. at the Centura Bank onMechanical Blvd., when Wiggins allegedly implied to a teller that he had agun, and demanded money. A surveillance camera reportedly caught him inthe act.
Jeremy Barnard works nearby and witnessed the aftermath of the robbery.
The suspect then left the bank on foot and headed toward the Days Inndown the street. Police found Wiggins had used his own name to rent athird-floor room there earlier in the day. Other guests were cleared fromthe hotel when police moved in.
Police said they believe Wiggins may have left the hotel in a taxi withanother African-American man. By 11 p.m., the suspect was in custody.
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