A gunshot was fired at during a robbery at a bank in Orange County Thursday, causing a nearby elementary school to be placed on lockdown.
An Orange County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson told KTLA that deputies were dispatched to the Chase Bank located near the intersection of Portola and Bake parkways in Foothill Ranch just after noon Thursday.
They responded quickly to the scene, and as the suspect was fleeing, a single gunshot was fired inside the bank. No one was struck.
It was not immediately known whether it was a deputy, the suspect or a witness that opened fire.
OCSD’s Lake Forest Police Services’ Facebook page put out an update at 12:40 p.m. advising residents to avoid the area “until further notice.”
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A gunshot was fired at during a robbery at a bank in Orange County Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, causing a nearby elementary school to be placed on lockdown. (Sky5) -
Video from Sky5 shows deputies searching the hillside near the plaza where the bank is located with K9 units. Authorities were also seen speaking with people, who appeared to be bank employees. -
Video from Sky5 shows deputies searching the hillside near the plaza where the bank is located with K9 units. Authorities were also seen speaking with people, who appeared to be bank employees.
Foothill Ranch Elementary was placed on lockdown after the incident as a precautionary measure, police said. A nearby neighborhood was also placed on lockdown, KTLA 5’s Gil Leyvas said from Sky5.
Video from Sky5 shows deputies searching the hillside near the plaza where the bank is located with K9 units. Authorities were also seen speaking with people, who appeared to be bank employees.
Officials told KTLA 5 Orange County Bureau Chief Chip Yost shortly after 2 p.m. that witnesses saw the sole suspect armed with a gun and that the suspect fled on foot.
The suspect was able to get away with some money, but the exact amount is unknown.
Jennifer Thang contributed to this report.
