Indio Bank Burns in 3rd Bombing of Its Kind in 5 Weeks

A predawn explosion ripped through a bank in Indio on Monday, scattering money across the parking lot and sparking a fire that engulfed the building, authorities said. It was the third suspicious blast at a Coachella Valley bank in five weeks.

Monday’s explosion occurred at 3:15 a.m. at the Security Pacific branch on California 111, Indio’s main downtown thoroughfare. The blast was centered in the night deposit box on the bank’s northern wall and was heard by residents a mile away.

Firefighters spent four hours battling the blaze, which gutted the bank and prompted authorities to close a half-mile stretch of California 111 for eight hours. No damage estimate was immediately available, but police said the bank’s safety deposit boxes and vault survived the flames.

“The vault was intact, but they lost all the money in the ATM and in the night deposit box,” Indio Police spokesman Garry Heckman said. “There were bills flying everywhere. We picked up as many as we could, but the wind blew a lot of them into the fire.”

Heckman said a man walking by the bank was detained briefly as a suspect but released. Witnesses reported seeing two men running through a nearby field, but officers searching the area came away empty-handed, Heckman said.

FBI spokesman Fred Reagan said federal investigators spent the day sifting through the charred debris. Reagan said the bureau’s investigation will look for a possible link between Monday’s blast and two others last month.

On May 7, an explosion at a Bank of America branch in a Palm Springs shopping center scattered cash and caused a minor fire. Damage was estimated at $100,000.

Two weeks later, a bomb caused major damage to Provident Federal Savings Bank on California 111 in Rancho Mirage, about 10 miles southeast of Palm Springs.

All three explosions were centered in the night deposit box and occurred in the early morning hours of a Monday. None of the blasts resulted in injuries.

“There’s a real sickie on the loose out here,” said Rolfe Arnhym, executive director of the Palm Springs Chamber of Commerce. “Everyone is a little on edge.”

Heckman said police have increased patrols in the commercial sector of Indio and some banks in the area have begun taking extra security precautions.