GLENDALE : Robbery Suspect, 59, Pleads Not Guilty

A 59-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from the “Old Man Bandit” robberies that occurred over a four-year span in Glendale and the San Gabriel and San Fernando valleys.

Edwin W. Loftus of Glendale entered his plea last week during an arraignment before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Judith Champagne, who set a Dec. 3 pretrial conference, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Karen Thorp, who is prosecuting the case.

Loftus faces 39 felony counts--27 of second-degree robbery, four of receiving stolen property, three of assault with a deadly weapon, three of attempted robbery, one of evading arrest and one of illegal possession of a gun, Thorp said.

If convicted on all charges, Loftus could receive up to 88 years and two months in state prison, she said. He remains in custody at Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles in lieu of $1-million bail.

On Thursday, Loftus’ attorney, Garrett Zelen, declined to comment on the case.

Authorities say Loftus is the same man who usually wore a fishing hat and wire-rim glasses while robbing people making deposits, mostly at Bank of America branches. The robberies netted about $500,000, police said.

Loftus was arrested April 29 after a police stakeout at a Bank of America branch led to a car chase.