A man who invaded U.S. Bank in April wielding a hammer and sprinkling powder on the counter to terrorize tellers has been indicted on a mountain of criminal charges.
The defendant, Arlin Pinkard Jr., was indicted on charges of aggravated assault, reckless endangerment with a weapon, vandalism, resisting arrest with a deadly weapon, distribution of a substance as an act of terrorism, domestic assault, and especially aggravated burglary.
He was charged when he walked shirtless into the Chancery Street bank in late April and began shouting threats before jumping on the counter and grabbing a hammer from a construction zone in the bank.
“He walked in and sprinkled the powder on the counter, saying something bad was going to happen,” said McMinnville police investigator Todd Rowland. “He never said what was going to happen, just that something bad was going to happen.”
While authorities have sent the white substance off for analysis they believe the powder was actually meth. Other than being an illegal drug, they do not believe the powder presented any physical threat to the bankers as would have something like anthrax or other kinds of hazardous powders. However, the allegation it was sprinkled in order to cause fear falls into the same law as does distributing a dangerous powder.
Investigators have not revealed what prompted Pinkard to enter the bank and begin yelling threats before chasing bank employees around with a hammer. However, authorities know Pinkard was at a residence across town just minutes before, attacking an ex-girlfriend.
Warrants reveal Pinkard broke into the house and physically assaulted the girl and members of her family before leaving and heading to the bank. Officers were taking the report on the domestic assault when Pinkard walked into the bank and began making the terrorist threats. Pinkard has been indicted for both the bank incident and the home invasion.