The cop strolled into the bank around 3 p.m. He walked over to Mrs. Ramsey, the head teller, who was the senior employee present in the bank at that time.

"Hi, I’m Lieutenant Dixon." He spoke in hushed tones. "I don’t want to alarm anybody," the lieutenant said, "but we’ve just learned that the Hughes Gang plans to rob your bank late this afternoon."

"Rob our bank?"blurted out the startled head teller.

"Shh," said the lieutenant putting his finger up to his lips, "we don’t want to alarm anybody — but you and all the other employees and customers must leave the bank immediately."p>

"We can’t leave the bank," said Mrs. Ramsey, "these are banking hours and our customers expect us to be open for business."p>

In an officious tone of voice, Lt. Dixon said to Mrs. Ramsey, "That was not a request, Madame — it was an order! Members of our SWAT team are enroute this very minute. Soon it will be far too dangerous for any of you to remain inside the bank — you all must leave — that’s a police command!"

Mrs. Ramsey nodded to the lieutenant, then spoke quietly to each of the tellers and customers in the bank. "Please leave the bank at once," she said quietly to each person.

Once outside, bank employees huddled together. Mrs. Ramsey said to the tellers, "There’s something fishy about that police lieutenant. Edna, let me borrow your cell phone for just a moment, I’ve got an important call to make."

Minutes after Mrs. Ramsey telephoned the chief of the town police, four patrol cars with two uniformed officers in each car rolled up at the front and rear of the bank. Moments later, town police found the "bogus" cop busily emptying each of the tellers’ cash drawers into a plastic bag.

What had tipped off Mrs. Ramsey? Well, she’d never seen that particular lieutenant before. But more importantly, when she got outside she remembered that this so-called cop was wearing the badge on his police uniform — upside down!