On Friday, Oct. 9, Paul Hogan thought he would be spending his last hour and a half as a Richmond Police officer quietly, filling out paperwork and reminiscing with other officers.

Then he heard the din of an emergency alarm at about 1:20 p.m. and was dispatched to an armed bank robbery call.

“I was telling some guys a story and kind of being nostalgic but when that tone goes off it’s time to get right back into it,” Hogan said.

The senior patrolman has been with the Richmond Police Department for six years and left the department for a Lexington Police position. Hogan is getting married in February and now lives in Paris, Kentucky so the new job will be a shorter commute, he said.

“It was going to be a bittersweet day for me, to be leaving all my coworkers. I’ve made friendships that are more like family and have worked with some amazing officers,” Hogan said. “It was going to be a sad day, but to go out like that just summed it all up. It was just awesome teamwork.”

Hogan and the officer he was training, Ben Smith, rushed to PNC Bank at the corner of East Main and Collins streets to begin collecting information.

Bank employees told police a white male who entered the bank pretended to be interested in a loan, but then announced a robbery, according to Police Chief Larry Brock. While no weapon was displayed, the suspect implied he was armed and demanded money. After receiving an undisclosed amount of cash, the suspect fled on foot.

Another radio call notified the officers a suspect had been spotted and there was a foot pursuit. At the same time as the call, a downpour began.

“That’s just how things were going that day,” Hogan said with a laugh. “I had just said what a quiet day it had been, and I get a call about a bank robbery. Then the rain starts as soon as there is a foot pursuit.”

Hogan and Smith began running to the area where the suspect had been seen, near a vacant house.

“I saw a trail and his clothes were near the house where he had discarded them so we wouldn’t recognize him. I went to the front door to secure it if he was in there,” Hogan said.

The rain was so loud that sounds from their radios and even shouts to one another were muffled, Hogan explained. While waiting next to the front door, he saw Officer Smith chasing the suspect and pin him to the ground. Hogan put handcuffs onto the alleged perpetrator later found to be 31-year-old Jerry Bierbaum.

“Even though we couldn’t hear, everyone got where they needed to be. We were able to recover the money that was stolen, nobody was hurt and we apprehended a suspect, so that was a good one. It was a good way to go out,” Hogan said.

Hogan says he already misses working for the Richmond Police Department.

“It’s an awesome group of people that were more like family than coworkers,” Hogan said. “They look forward to going into work and doing all they can to protect the streets of Richmond.”

Machaela Ballard writes for the Richmond (Kentucky) Register.