Bigfork bank robbed

A man who robbed Rocky Mountain Bank in Bigfork on Friday morning was disguised in a wig and fake facial hair, and was reportedly intoxicated.

The Flathead County Sheriff's Office took a call at about 9:45 a.m. about an alarm at the bank.

A teller said the man pulled back his jacket to reveal the butt of a semi-automatic pistol in his waistband, according to sheriff's detective Cmdr. Bruce Parish. The robber told her to stay calm, said he had a gun and demanded money. A teller gave him several thousand dollars, and the man walked out the

back door of the bank.

Sheriff Jim Dupont said the bank president followed the robber, who disappeared into a wooded ravine behind the IGA complex in Bigfork.

Dupont said the man is about 5 feet, 9 inches tall, of indeterminate age. He wore glasses, a military-type baseball cap and a fatigue-type jacket, he said.

About nine sheriff's deputies and search dogs looked in vain for the man for about five hours, Parish said.

"We expected to at least find the disguise," but nothing turned up.

The FBI assisted in the search and may take over the investigation, Parish said.

About 45 minutes after the robbery, a bank in Lakeside also sounded an alarm, Dupont said.

"That really had us worried," Parish said. That alarm turned out to be false.

Anyone with information about the robbery or someone who has suddenly come into a large sum of money should call the Sheriff's Office at 758-5610.