Crime & Safety

Bank Robber Who Hit Venice Bank Among SoCal's Top 10 Serial Robbers

The FBI says the so-called "Explosives Threat Bandit" is among the top 10 serial bank robbers in Southern California.

The so-called "Explosives Threat Bandit" who allegedly robbed a Chase Bank in Venice last month has been listed among the 10 serial bank robbers in Southern California, officials with the FBI's Los Angeles field office said Thursday.

The list of serial bank robbers was released Thursday along with FBI statistics that showed 287 bank robberies in 2011 in the seven-county federal judicial district that includes Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. The majority occurred in Los Angeles County, which had 122 reported bank heists, and was followed by Orange County with 67 robberies, the FBI said in a statement.

There's been a steady decrease in the number of bank robberies in Southern California since they peaked in the early 1990, the FBI said. The 287 robberies in 2011 was about one-ninth of the region's high in 1992, when there were more than 2,600 bank robberies.

The pace of bank robberies has picked up so far in 2012, with 40 bank bank robberies reported last month in the seven-county area, the FBI said. California consistently has more bank robberies than any other state and roughly 40 to 45 percent of them occur in the seven-county territory that includes Los Angeles.

The FBI attributed the overall decrease in bank robberies to improved cooperation among law enforcement agencies, successful prosecutions and better bank security, including increasingly clear bank surveillance photographs.

The "Explosives Threat Bandit" earned his moniker by leaving a device made up of electronic components and wiring and saying that someone outside would detonate the package, indicating that it involved explosives. The bandit's technique has required bomb squads to respond and render the device safe. The bank robber hit the Chase Bank at 1415 Lincoln Blvd. in Venice on Jan. 17, the same day that he robbed a Bank of America iat 2930 S. Sepulveda Blvd. in the Palms area. He also robbed two other banks in January and two in November.

The other bank robbers in the FBI's list of top 10 SoCal bank robbers include:

  • Cheekbone Bandit who has hit four banks in Orange County
  • Double Up Bandit who has robbed three banks, including the same U.S. Bank twice in Woodland Hills
  • Geezer Bandit who appears to be an elderly white male, but who may have been wearing a maks and synthetic gloves to disguise his age and facial features and has robbed 16 banks from Bakersfield to San Diego
  • Gone Plaid Bandit who has worn plaid shirts during some of his seven bank robberies in Orange County
  • Interleague Play Bandit who has been seen wearing baseball hats with various sports team logos during his four bank robberies in the downtown Los Angeles area
  • Lift and Show Bandit who lifts his jacket to show a black handgun in his waistband and threatens to shoot victims during his three bank robberies
  • Make it Quick Bandit who has warned tellers that someone is waiting outside of the bank during his four robberies in San Pedro and Inglewood
  • Snowboarder Bandit, a blonde robber who has worn black shades, a raincoat and beanie hat during his four robberies in Orange County
  • Stretch Bandit who has been described as being between 6-feet 2-inches and 6-feet 4-inches tall during his four bank robberies in Hacienda Heights and Rowland Heights

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