Filmmaker Ryan Coogler of Black Panther fame was briefly held by Atlanta police in January when they confused him for a thief at a Bank of America.
According to Variety, he verified the news to the outlet and said, "This situation should never have happened. However, Bank of America worked with me and addressed it to my satisfaction and we have moved on."
According to the Atlanta police report, the 35-year-old filmmaker was held and handcuffed on January 7 after going to Bank of America to complete a transaction.
Ryan, who was dressed in a hat, sunglasses, and a Covid face mask, went to the bank's counter and handed the teller a withdrawal sheet that reportedly stated, "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."
However, when the transaction amount exceeded USD 10,000 and generated an alert message from Coogler's bank account, the teller misconstrued the scenario as an attempted robbery and told her manager of her concerns. They then phoned the police as a group.
When police arrived, they found a black Lexus SUV outside the bank with its engine running and two occupants, a lady and a man, seated inside.
The duo told an officer that they were waiting for Coogler, a "movie producer," who was making a money transaction. The cop asked the man for a description of Coogler and police said in the report that it matched the description of the male suspect that was "attempting to rob the Bank of America."
Coogler's coworkers were kept in the back of a police truck, and Coogler was handcuffed and escorted out of the bank by two cops. Officers freed Coogler and his coworkers after validating Coogler's identity and his Bank of America account.
