Authorities have not disclosed any information on how much money was stolen from the PNC Bank branch, but no one was injured in the heist.
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According to Perryville Police Chief Allen Miller, the bank teller involved in the incident described the suspect as black. However, after investigators scrutinized security video, they noticed that the suspect had white skin between his right hand and jacket sleeve.
"He had obviously covered his face in black something. I don't know if it was makeup or what,” Miller told ABC News. “We're still investigating.”
Police have described the suspect as a “white male, with paint on his face,” who is most likely in his late 20s to early 30s. The robbery took place at around 1 p.m. local time on Tuesday.
"He walks up to the teller and he presents the teller with a note, and the note basically said, 'Hey, I want all your money. Don't give me a money bag. I want all the money in the drawer,'" Miller said, ABC News reported. The teller emptied out her cash drawer and placed it on the counter.
"He scooped up the money and left. It took about 15 to 20 seconds total for this to happen. No weapon was displayed nor insinuated,” Miller added.
Brown or blackface refers to makeup used by white people to typically perform stereotypes of black, South Asian or Latin American people. It was used by white performers in 19th century America in minstrel shows - an American form of entertainment - to ridicule blacks.
