When it comes to bank-robbing gimmicks, Star Wars beats distraction-by-bouquet. A thief dressed in a Darth Vader costume walked away with an unspecified amount of cash on Wednesday from a bank in Setauket. His commitment to the costume was somewhat mitigated by his camouflage pants and gun (no light saber, dude?) although he does get style points for wearing a cape. Apparently one customer thought the get-up was amusing and “started joshing” with “Darth Robber” (nice one, Daily News!): “The customer thought it might have been a joke, and not a serious attempt at a robbery,” Suffolk County police Detective Sgt. William Lamb said. Unamused, the robber ordered the man to the ground. We could understand giving lip to C-3PO (or even Chewbacca), but if you’re bold enough to mess with Darth Vader, you’re basically asking to end up on the floor.

While we can’t condone armed robbery, here’s hoping Darth made a clean getaway and is plotting a follow-up, possibly dressed as Boba Fett. If he shows up as Jar-Jar, a Phantom Menace-hating vigilante just might take him out.

Man wearing Darth Vader mask and cape robs L.I. bank with gun, shoves customer to floor [NYDN]