A woman called a Wells Fargo branch in downtown St. Paul on Thursday and threatened to blow the place up if its employees didn’t follow her instructions, charges say.
Ann Marie Simpkins, 59, told the branch manager who answered the phone at 12:10 p.m. that he was to direct a specific employee to open the bank’s vault and empty its contents into a black bag, according to a criminal complaint filed against Simpkins on Friday.
He was then to deliver the bag to a Walgreens store across the street by 1 p.m.
The manager was instructed to “not mess around” or Simpkins would “blow the bank up” with a bomb, the complaint said.
Simpkins was charged Friday in Ramsey County District Court with one count of making terroristic threats in connection with the incident.
While the bank manager was on the call, he placed the woman on speakerphone and walked into another office, where he subsequently contacted the branch’s security division, authorities say.
The bank’s caller ID identified Simpkins as the caller. Wells Fargo’s records indicated the St. Paul woman has an account at the bank.
When officers went to her home, Simpkins admitted to police that she placed the call, the complaint said.
She reportedly told officers she had been to the branch some time ago and that a teller had been rude to her. She added that she planned to have a friend pick up the money and that she knew her actions were wrong, charges say.
She also admitted to telling the bank manager that she strategically placed bombs around the branch days before placing the call and that she planned to set them off if he didn’t cooperate, according to authorities.
Simpkins’ boyfriend told police that the woman was drunk at the time and didn’t mean what she said.
Simpkins reported to officers that she drank about half a beer that day.
She has no known criminal record in Minnesota.
She is scheduled to make her first court appearance on the charge Monday.
Neither Simpkins nor any of her relatives could be immediately reached for comment.