Peter Reuell| State Journal-Register
Sometimes, it can be easy to spot bank security in action.
Walk into almost any bank in the world, and you'll probably see security cameras, tellers behind bulletproof glass, security guards and heavy vault doors.
When it's most needed, though, bank customers may never notice bank security in action.
Every year, statistics show, thousands of banks are robbed throughout the United States, and bank customers often never realize a heist has happened until after it's over.
Part of the reason why can be chalked up to the training bank staff receive, training that experts say is designed to get armed and potentially violent bank robbers out of the building as quickly as possible.
Though MetroWest and Milford region bankers were understandably wary about discussing bank security this week, officials at several local banks emphasized that all employees do receive security training.
"Bank staff do go through training, but I'm not going to discuss the nature of it," said Bruce Spitzer, a spokesman for the Massachusetts Bankers Association. "The nature of the training should be kept confidential."
While training varies from bank to bank, Al Hazen, president of the National Association for Bank Security said most focus on two facets: making sure customers or employees are not endangered, and being a good witness once the robbery is over.
"Our training is very simple," Hazen said. "Money's not that important. (What is) is everyone in the bank staying safe. Everyone, whether employees or customers, needs to go home safe, and that means complying."
While the training urges employees not to resist robbers, there are steps employees can take to help catch a robber down the road, Hazen emphasized.
"As best you can, look the person in the eye," he said. "Look at the person, if there's anything distinctive about them, try to remember it."
If possible, Hazen said, employees should do what they can to aid in the robber's capture, by triggering alarms or inserting explosive red-dye packs into a robber's loot.
"All that depends on what demand has been made," Hazen said. "If you get a note that says don't hit any alarms, don't give me any bait money...you're better off not doing it. It's not worth getting harmed for."
Overall, the strategy is simply to get the robber out of the bank quickly.
"We call it 60 seconds or less," he said. "You have a robber in front of you, can we vacate them out of the premises quickly? We can by complying. Basically, what you're hoping for at that point is you just want to be compliant, and to be a good witness."
"I would agree with that," said Peter Mazzini, assistant vice president and security officer at Milford National Bank and Trust. "(The goal) is to get him out of the bank. We don't want to cause any kind of confrontation. If he says put the money in the bag, you put the money in the bag and send him on his way.
"I really can't give the details of what training is done," Mazzini added. "Obviously, we don't want to give any robbers...tips on what to do or not do. Everybody is trained, and the utmost concern is the safety of employees and customers."
Besides training employees to deal with robberies when they occur, there are other steps banks take to deter thefts, Mazzini said.
Along with dozens of other banks, Milford National participates in a program supported by the Massachusetts Bankers Association in which banks ask customers to remove their hats and sunglasses when they enter a bank.
The idea, Mazzini said, is to prevent a potential robber from trying to hide his or her face from security cameras.
"That has been proven to be a deterrent," he said.
Like many other banks, Milford National also has an employee "greeter" who welcomes customers as they enter the bank.
Greeters serve two purposes, Mazzini said: They make regular customers feel welcome and allow a second employee besides the teller to get a close look at any potential robbers before they strike.
Most banks, including the Framingham Co-Operative Bank, also restrict how much money a teller may have at one time, which limits how much a robber might take.
"All banks have restrictions...because, frankly, banks don't have tons of money," said Steve Sousa, senior vice president of retail banking at the Framingham Co-Operative Bank. "It's both for security reasons and because we can't earn money on cash that's just sitting there" in a vault or cash drawer.
Though he wouldn't discuss the details of the bank's training program, Sousa said bank employees go through a comprehensive program, which includes security and robbery prevention.
"We feel what's most important is the safety of our employees and our customers," Sousa said.
But what happens after the robbery is over?
Though most robberies last only minutes, their effects can linger for weeks or months, Hazen said.
"Most financial facilities have the ability to get the right kind of counseling person there," he said. "Not only is it required for the individual who was the point of the foil...but also for the other personnel.
"None of us go to work thinking, 'Today we're going to have violence.' It's not something you can act cavalier about."
"We certainly do have resources available were something like that to occur in one of our locations," said David Fleischmann-Rose, a public relations representative for the Middlesex Savings Bank in Natick. "We have a comprehensive (group) of employee benefits programs. I think that sort of counseling would be a natural extension of the resources we try and make available to our employees anyway."
Peter Reuell can be reached at 508-626-4428, or at [email protected]
