2 Gunmen Dressed as Priests Hold Up Bank in Costa Mesa

Two gray-haired men dressed in clerical garb held up the Pacific Savings Bank at 234 East 17th St. in Costa Mesa at 9:50 a.m. Thursday and escaped with an undisclosed amount of cash.

The two robbers, both armed with pistols, were described as looking “like Catholic priests” because they wore black garb with white collars.

The gunmen herded about six customers and several bank employees into a coffee-break room. No shots were fired, and no one was injured, FBI agents and Costa Mesa police reported.

“There was a report that the men looked like Jewish rabbis, but I think that was wrong as one of the men was definitely described as wearing a cross on a chain around his neck,” said John Hoos, spokesman for the FBI office in Los Angeles.

Jerry Godfrey, security director for the Pacific Savings Bank corporate system, declined to release the amount of money stolen. He said a report that about $70,000 was taken “is quite a lot higher” than the actual amount.

Hoos said both robbers were about 65 or 70 years old. Costa Mesa police said one of the gunmen herded the bank customers and employees into the coffee-break room while the other man took cash from the bank tellers.