‘Speed Queen’ Suspect Arrested

FBI agents arrested a woman accused of being the “Speed Queen Bandit” on Friday in five recent San Diego bank robberies in which she allegedly gave tellers only a few seconds to hand over the money or pay with their lives.

Rita L. Bennett, 36, was arrested in the 11000 block of Jonny Lane in the Rancho Penasquitos area. Raymond Allwell, 26, also was arrested in the 8500 block of Summerdale Road in Mira Mesa and charged with participating in two of the five bank holdups.

Joseph Johnson, special agent in charge of the San Diego FBI office, said the investigation leading to the arrests was conducted by the San Diego Police Department and the FBI.

Bennett was charged Friday in U.S. District Court with the April 25 robbery of a Wells Fargo Bank on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, the June 19 robbery of of a Wells Fargo branch on La Jolla Village Drive and three June 5 bank robberies.

Allwell is charged in two of the June 5 robberies: one at a Wells Fargo Bank on Via De La Valle near Del Mar and a Wells Fargo branch on Pomerado Road in Poway. Bennett alone is charged with the June 5 holdup at the Home Federal Bank on Genesee Ave.

Each of the armed robberies carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $5,000 fine. About $3,000 was taken in the five robberies.

The so-called “Speed Queen Bandit” got her name because of the urgent demand notes handed to tellers. One read, “Three seconds and I’ll blow your head off.”