7 Injured in Bungled Bank Robbery : Armored Car Guard, Teen Bandit Hurt in Crenshaw Shoot-Out

An armored car guard and a gun-wielding teen-ager wounded each other today in a dramatic shoot-out inside a Wells Fargo Bank near the Crenshaw shopping district. Five other people were injured by bullet fragments and flying glass and two suspects apparently fled the scene, police said.

A Federal Armored Express guard was carrying money into the Wells Fargo branch near 43rd Place and Crenshaw Boulevard at 9:43 a.m., when a gunman rose from a chair inside the lobby and fired at least five shots, according to Los Angeles police investigators.

Officers at the scene

The armored truck, carrying a delivery from a local merchant, had just arrived at the bank and the guard was entering the branch when the youth began firing, according to Wells Fargo spokesman Wes Lockwood.

Despite wounds in his back and hand, the unidentified guard whirled around and fired three bullets at his attacker. The suspect staggered out the glass entrance doors and fell on the sidewalk.

‘Put Gun to His Head’

One eyewitness said he was standing at the automatic teller machine when he saw the suspect emerge from the bank holding a gun in one hand and two bags of money in the other.

“He came through the door and that’s when the guard shot him again,” said Michael Jones, 25. “He grabbed his back and fell down. Then the guard put the gun to his head and said, ‘Don’t move.’ ”

The money shipment in two cream-colored bags lay on the blood-spattered sidewalk.

Suspect in Critical Condition

The wounded suspect, identified only as a 17-year-old youth, was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. “He has a bullet in his head and another in the right side of his abdomen,” said hospital spokesman Ron Wise. “He is in critical condition.”

Los Angeles Police Lt. Bob Ruchhoft described the injuries to bank customers as “relatively minor.” He said the guard suffered “moderate wounds.”

Jones said a second suspect who was standing about five feet away ran off and jumped into a Chevrolet Camaro. Other witnesses said the accomplice shouted “Go! Go! Go!” as he rode off in the car.

There have been more than a dozen armored car robberies in Los Angeles County in the past year.