Bank and shop robbed

A MAN has been charged with three armed robberies, including one on a Fishponds bank and one on a newsagent.

Police were called to the NatWest bank branch in Fishponds Road at about 9.30am on May 23 after a man who was seen to be carrying a knife threatened staff before making off with an undisclosed amount of cash.

The suspect was seen escaping on an e-scooter after the incident.

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Later that day police arrested a man on suspicion of robbery, and a woman was arrested in the early hours of the following morning, on suspicion of conspiring to commit robbery.

Police said 42-year-old Marcus Laing, of Rodney Road in St George, had been charged with three counts of robbery and three counts of possessing a bladed article.

The charges relate to three separate incidents.

Police say the other two incidents were an alleged robbery on May 18 at a newsagent on Forest Road and another robbery at a home in Bristol on May 20.

Laing has appeared before magistrates and been remanded in custody ahead of an appearance at Bristol Crown Court on June 23.

A 53-year-old woman has been released under investigation.

Police are appealing for anyone who was in Fishponds Road at the time of the bank robbery, who saw someone fleeing the scene or was in the bank, but has not yet come forward, to contact them.

They are also calling on anyone who has relevant CCTV, dashcam or phone footage to get in touch.

Witnesses should call 101 and quote the crime reference number 5223 119 763.

The bank was closed for two days after the incident, reopening on May 25.

A NatWest spokesperson said: "We continue to work with police on their investigation relating to this incident."

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