‘Businessman Bandit’ Foiled on Try No. 10
A man suspected of committing nine other bank robberies in Southern California tried again Tuesday but came away empty-handed.
A bank operations manager at Hawthorne Savings & Loan Assn. in Westlake Village foiled the would-be robber who had handed her a note demanding money at 9:40 a.m., said FBI Special Agent Gary Auer.
The manager took the man to a closed teller window and explained that there was no money because the window was closed and that she did not have a key, Auer said.
After a short discussion, the man left the bank at 973 S. Westlake Blvd. on foot.
He did not display a weapon, Auer said.
The suspect, known as the “businessman bandit” because to his business-like manner, is suspected of robbing nine other banks since July in Santa Barbara, Pismo Beach, San Luis Obispo and the San Fernando Valley, Auer said.
The man is described as Caucasian, in his 30s, about 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighing 170 pounds.
He has short, curly dark brown hair and a well-trimmed beard and was wearing blue denim jeans and a blue long-sleeved shirt on Tuesday.
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