Bank robber turns self in
By Clinton Vining
Publisher, The Sun
 At 2:57 p.m. on Friday a woman came into the Willamina branch of Bank of America and demanded $2,000.
Seconds later she walked out the front door and turned left toward the apartments behind the Main Street bank.
Minutes later law enforcement was on scene and a short time later there were officers from as far away as Newberg-Dundee.
But by 10:30 p.m., with the help of family members, the Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO) had talked Willamina’s Angela Marie Burks into turning herself in.
Burks, 34, of Southwest Barber Ave. in Willamina, was arrested and charged with second degree robbery. She was booked at Yamhill County Jail with bail set at $150,000.
According to the the YCSO, shortly before 3 p.m. a woman walked into the bank and demanded $2,000 from one of the tellers. She told the teller to keep her hands where she could see them, but never referred to any weapons.
The bank teller gave her what she had in her till, approximately $420. The woman then left the bank on foot and disappeared around the corner.
A witness inside the bank, who preferred to remain anonymous, told The Sun that the robbers’ whole exchange at the counter was very quiet.
“We never could identify her voice,” the witness said.
When the woman walked into the bank, she looked odd in her heavy coat, hat and sunglasses.
“She looked like a bank robber when she walked into the bank,” the witness said.
As soon as the woman walked out the door, one of the bank employees announced that they had just been robbed and locked the doors and the cops arrived quickly, the witness told The Sun.
Law enforcement that included the Oregon State Police, a K-9 unit and deputies and detectives from throughout the valley, began canvassing the area, showing surveillance photos of the suspect.
Then, just before 4:30 p.m., the end of D Street was barricaded and police appeared to be in a stand-off. The number of bystanders was growing and people began wondering if this was connected to the bank robbery. It was not—see the related story: Stand-off ends peacefully in Willamina.
Meanwhile, tips were already coming in about the woman in the photos.
“Within one hour, the suspect’s employer, several friends and even family members had called our detectives with a name,” said Sheriff Jack Crabtree. “Because of that information, and the help of some family members, our detectives were able to contact Angela (Burks) on the phone and talked her into turning herself in.”
Burks told detectives that she was in debt and needed the money to pay off some bills.
Until this incident, Burks worked in player services at Spirit Mountain Casino at the Coyote Club desk and worked in the entertainment and promotions department prior to that, said a spokesman for the casino.
Second-degree robbery is a Measure 11 offense punishable by a minimum sentence.
 
 
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