On Monday December 23rd the Castro branch of Sterling Bank & Trust (2120 Market Street) was held up and robbed. The brazen bank robbery occurred around 3:45PM during the mad rush of the final hours of holiday shopping. A lone masked man walked into the small bank holding a gun and demanded the teller give him all the money. He then strode around the counter, pulled open all the bank cash drawers and emptied them of their contents. He exited the bank located next to Blackbird bar shortly after. At post time it wasn't clear if he got into a waiting car or made his getaway on foot. Police have not disclosed the amount of cash taken during the armed robbery. They did say they believe the thief to be in his twenties, but left out most other pertinent information. I spoke with one of four police officers left on site post robbery and was informed the teller nor anyone else were injured during the heist. No arrests have been reported at this time. Sterling Bank & Trust has been in business since 1984. They have thirteen neighborhood branches in San Francisco, one in Burlingame, California and a branch and corporate headquarters in Southfield, Michigan. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Police Department’s anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444 or send a tip by text message to TIP411 with “SFPD” in the message.