It is fascinating that this case of mistaken identity involving Black Panther director Ryan Coogler and a teller at Bank of America Apathy is yet another example of what the Left does to conservatives and others who believe in individual liberties. Coogler, who was exercising his right to his own money—and doing it legally–was suspected of being a bank robber and arrested without proof.
Sound familiar? Due process, much?
The Atlanta Police confirmed Coogler’s identity only after the arrest of him and two of his colleagues, who were waiting for him outside the bank with the engine running.
Excellent deductive reasoning skills of these cops—straight out of Bonnie and Clyde <insert *eyeroll* emoji>. Despite it being the South, it’s still cold in Atlanta in January; so having your engine running while waiting for someone is not unusual.
The entertainment publication Variety reported on the January 7 incident between Coogler and Bank of America.
“Black Panther” director Ryan Coogler was briefly detained by police in Atlanta in January after he was mistaken for a bank robber at a Bank of America, according to a police report filed Wednesday.
The director confirmed the incident to Variety. “This situation should never have happened,” he said. “However, Bank of America worked with me and addressed it to my satisfaction and we have moved on.”
Good on Coogler for not using this incident as another example of rAciSm, even though Variety could not help itself.
But, I digress….
I surmise that it is because Coogler is a member of certain racial and industry demographics that this story received the type of press it did two months later. Had Coogler been a conservative, worked as a trucker, or had a deficient melanin count, it would probably have been connected to J6 and other narratives the Left enjoys trafficking in. The teller might have even received some commendation for their incompetence.
Word to Coogler: find another bank, or better yet, a cryptocurrency wallet.
What this really points to is how Leftist corporate entities like Bank of America (who are no beacons of light themselves), train their people. High-income, and high-profile clients like Coogler used to be known entities at their banks. With the ability to pull up identity information in an instant, the teller should have done just that. As Coogler said, it should never have happened.
It is reflective of the ineptitude of the people hired for such positions, and how much of this sector lives under the cloud of corn-fed narratives. In the case of conservatives, these optics and narratives are used to deliberately target and marginalize; Coogler just happened to get caught in the web.
Coogler was detained and handcuffed after he went to Bank of America to make a transaction on Jan. 7, according to the Atlanta police report. The 35-year-old director — who was wearing a hat, sunglasses and a COVID face mask — went to the counter and handed the bank teller a withdrawal slip with a note written on the back that reportedly read, “I would like to withdraw $12,000 cash from my checking account. Please do the money count somewhere else. I’d like to be discreet.”
Reason No. 9,779 for ditching the COVID theater; but again, I digress.
The teller, however, misinterpreted the situation as an attempted robbery when the amount of the transaction exceeded $10,000 and triggered an alert notification from Coogler’s bank account. The teller then informed her boss that she suspected it was a robbery attempt and together they called the police.
Four Atlanta PD officers arrived at the scene and detained two of Coogler’s colleagues, who were waiting for him outside the bank in a car with the engine running. They informed the officers who Coogler was and what he was wearing, which matched the description of the man suspected of robbing the bank. Coogler’s colleagues were detained in the back of a police vehicle, and Coogler was handcuffed and taken out of the bank by two of the officers. After verifying Coogler’s identity and his Bank of America account, the officers released him and his colleagues.
It’s no longer the 1930s, with mobsters and bootleggers running up on banks willy-nilly. Bank robberies are a studied and timed art, and this increases as technology becomes more refined. Would a robber choose a specific account and then take the time to allow a teller to count the money? Doubtful. Even an average identity thief can rob $10,000 without leaving their couch.
Perhaps a better procedure, one that banks used in the wayback years, could have come into play here. Have Coogler meet with the branch manager—without the sunglasses and mask—show two pieces of photo identification, and receive the money in the discrete fashion he had requested.
Instead, they embarrassed Ryan Coogler, and ultimately embarrassed themselves. Good thing Coogler and the Hollywood crowd that keeps Bank of Apathy propped up are forgiving. Had it been any other way, the response would not have been the same.
These modern-day mobsters also showed their hand. It’s not just about conservatives and free thinkers anymore. Coogler may have been an “accident,” but the next one may not.
Whether it is crypto wallets or a mattress, millions of dollars or a few thousand, it’s time for smart Americans to divest themselves from corporate banking and its Leftist agenda.
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