A bank robber with a foot-long screwdriver was no match for two intrepid citizens, a forklift and a plank of wood last week.

The FBI has commended Jason Strzeszynski and Robert Okoniewski for chasing a suspected bank robber and pinning him down until police arrived. Mr Okoniewski chased the suspect in a forklift, then used a metre-long piece of wood to confront the man, according to a Buffalo News report.

Mr Strzeszynski had left a tavern when he saw the man running down the street carrying a long screwdriver. He chased the man into a nearby yard, where Mr Okoniewski was using a forklift.

"I began chasing the guy on my forklift," Mr Okoniewski told the newspaper. "It moves pretty fast, about 15 miles an hour, and I was gaining on him." The brand of forklift was not reported.

Mr Okoniewski then joined the foot chase, taking the piece of wood, and squaring off with the robber. The two pursuers knocked the man to the ground and held him until police arrived.