Police search for robber
Deepa Bharath
Police and federal agents are looking for a man they call the “Give
Me More Bandit,” who they believe robbed three Newport-Mesa banks in
the last two months, officials said Tuesday.
The man, believed to be in his early 30s or 40s, reportedly robbed
the Wells Fargo Bank branch in Costa Mesa on Aug. 6, and two Bank of
America branches in Newport Beach, one on Sept. 30 and another as
recently as Tuesday, said Newport Beach Police Sgt. Steve Shulman.
“In all three robberies, the suspect threatened the teller with a
weapon but did not display it,” Shulman said. “But we are considering
him to be armed and dangerous.”
The same man also reportedly robbed the Orange County Credit Union
in Anaheim on Aug. 28.
The alleged robber also reportedly demanded more money after
initially taking cash from the tellers, which is how he got his
nickname, Shulman said. Shulman declined to give specific information
about what the man told the tellers.
FBI officials and local police departments are interested in this
man, Shulman said, because “he is hitting financial institutions
frequently and this makes him dangerous.”
“We have terrific photographs of this suspect and we know that
there are people out there that will recognize him and will want to
turn him in,” he said. “It’s in the public’s best interest to get him
off the street and we’d like to get a phone call today from someone
who knows him.”
The man is described about 5-foot-9 weighing 150 to 160 pounds
with a receding black hair line.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Newport Beach Police
Department at (800) 550-6273.
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.