5 Asians Learn Banking Term: ‘It’s a Stickup’

Five Asian people unwittingly handed a bank teller a deposit slip with a “stickup” message on the back and were taken into custody today, the victims of an apparent prank, police said.

The five were questioned for about two hours and then released without being charged, Police Sgt. Harry Geehreng said.

The three men and two women were picked up after presenting a First American Bank branch teller a deposit slip without knowing that it had the words “this is a stickup” written on the back, Geehreng said.

He said the message apparently was scrawled on the slip and placed in a pile of deposit slips as a prank.

He said bank customers have been advised to check the backs of deposit and withdrawal slips to avoid falling prey to such practical jokes.

“Or else the next thing you know, the cops come in with their guns drawn and order you to put your hands over your head, and you’re a suspect in a bank robbery,” Geehreng said.

Geehreng said the five Asians’ predicament was especially troublesome because only one in the group spoke any English. Their nationality was undetermined, he said.