2 Banks Robbed in 2-Day Period

Armed bandits robbed two banks in North Hills and Northridge over a two-day period, making off with undisclosed amounts of cash, federal authorities said.

Two suspects with handguns, wearing ski masks and baseball caps, robbed the North Hills branch of Sanwa Bank in the 16900 block of Nordhoff Street about 4 p.m. Tuesday, said Ron Twersky, an FBI spokesman in the Los Angeles office.

As many as four people were involved in the robbery, but witnesses only provided descriptions of two men, Twersky said.

The two men entered the bank, approached a teller and demanded money, he said.

Both of the robbers are described as white males of unknown age. The first is described as 5 feet, 10 inches tall, with a medium build. The second is slender and about 5 feet, 7 inches tall, Twersky said.

In the second robbery, a lone robber in Northridge walked up to a teller’s window Wednesday at the Home Savings & Loan in the 9100 block of Corbin Avenue, about 10:55 a.m. and demanded money. The man told bank officials he was armed but he never displayed a weapon, Twersky said.

The robber is described as a heavy-set white or Latino male, 5 feet, 10 inches tall with straight brown hair.

He escaped in a utility vehicle described as a black Ford Bronco, Twersky said.

There have been 1,370 bank robberies committed in the seven-county region covered by the Los Angeles FBI office, a 35% drop from a year ago, Twersky said.

There were more than 2,600 bank robberies committed in the Los Angeles FBI area in the previous year, he said.