Local News in Brief : 2 Brothers Arrested in Burglary at S & L

A Van Nuys man and his brother were arrested Tuesday on suspicion of burglary in a break-in at a Northridge savings-and-loan institution earlier this month.

Douglas C. Greene, 28, who also uses the name Robert Anthony Hurst, and his brother, Robert W. Greene, 23, will each be charged today with two counts of burglary and two counts of burglary by means of an acetylene torch, Deputy Dist. Atty. Alan S. Yochelson said.

The maximum penalty for burglary by means of an acetylene torch, a seldom-used charge meant for professional burglars, is seven years in prison, Yochelson said. The maximum penalty for burglary is three years in prison.

Los Angeles police said an investigation of the Feb. 3 break-in at Investment Savings & Loan Assn., 8354 Reseda Blvd., led police to seek a warrant to search Douglas Greene’s house in Van Nuys. Items found in the house led to the arrest of the two brothers, police said.

A security guard responding to an early-morning silent alarm prevented losses to the bank by chasing away two intruders who had used a cutting torch to break into the vault.

Before being disturbed, the burglars had opened several safe deposit boxes and stacked jewelry, coins, money and other valuables on the floor, police said.