A cryptic message that confused a teller tripped up a would-be bank robber during the weekend, police in New Jersey said.

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Police in Ewing said the attempted robbery occurred at a Bank of America Saturday when a man slipped the note to a teller who didn't understand what he wanted, The Times of Trenton (N.J.) reported Sunday.

The note said, "No dye and I won't shoot," said Ewing Police Sgt. John Stemler.

"She was confused," Stemler said. "She slipped it back to him and said, 'I think you gave me the wrong thing.'"

The man asked, "You're not gonna cash my check?," then fled, Stemler said. Moments later the teller realized what the note meant and alerted her supervisor, he said.

Police were reviewing the bank's surveillance tape to see if they could identify the would-be robber.