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.