Lone Tree police officer John Hastings said he was “just doing his job” after he tackled a bank robbery suspect on the run.

On Nov. 6 at approximately 9:35 a.m., Hastings was dispatched to assist the Douglas County sheriff’s office on a bank robbery at The Bank of the West branch on East County Line Road and South Quebec Street.

The suspect, 27-year-old Levi Sterling, was described as a white male, approximately 5 feet tall, wearing a black beard, hat, coat and pants in black as well. Sterling had left the bank on foot, police say, and a witness spotted him west of Fairfeld Inn, carrying “something” wrapped up.

Hastings said he drove up to East Business Center Drive, and saw a suspicious person “kind of jogging”.

“I thought he looked suspicious because he wasn’t wearing work-out attire,” Hastings said. “Plus he was in the proximity of the bank.”

As part of a police officer’s training, Hastings said they are always taught to believe the person has a weapon, if they can’t see one. He positioned his vehicle so it would protect him, if there was shooting.

“I thought maybe the suspect was young, and he was running away from me because he was smoking,” Hastings said.

Another thought that ran through his mind was if this wasn’t the bank robber, what if he hurt this person by tackling him on the pavement.

When Hastings entered the parking lot of Walmart, he knew he had to do something, so as not to get into a hostage-type situation.

“I was approximately 10 feet behind him and after identifying myself, asking him to stop earlier, I drew my Taser,” Hastings said.

The strobes hit Sterling’s backpack, and he momentarily stopped, but then continued to run southbound.

“That’s when I tackled him,” Hastings said.

Hastings said he was in the right place at the right time, and the capture was a joint effort. Two other police officers, Sgt. Brett Callahan and Deputy Timothy Vienot, aided the arrest by handcuffing and patting down Sterling for weapons.

Two white envelopes, a prosthetic black beard, a small bottle of mace and a handwritten note were located on Sterling.

Lone Tree police chief Steve Hasler said it is very rare to capture a bank robber on the same day, let alone within minutes from the time of the robbery.

“It usually takes a day or two after following a trail,” Hastings said.

Although Hastings put himself in a possible dangerous position, not knowing if Sterling had a weapon, he said he doesn’t believe he went above or beyond his line of duty.

“It was exciting, I’m not going to lie,” he said. “But it’s not like the movies.”