SIMI VALLEY : Man Captured After Robbery at Bank

An armed robber who threatened a teller at a Simi Valley bank with a fake bomb was captured minutes after he drove away from the scene of the robbery, authorities said.

Glenn Burnett of Simi Valley was arrested Wednesday a short distance from the First State Bank of the Oaks after his car was spotted by police who were responding to the bank’s alarm, said Simi Valley Police Officer Dave Delmarto.

The robbery occurred at 2:14 p.m. when a gunman entered the bank branch at 2455 Sycamore Drive and placed a small piece of clay on the counter in front of a teller, Delmarto said.

The man, disguised in a false beard and large sunglasses, told the teller that the clay was a bomb, and then removed a handgun from his briefcase.

He fled after receiving an undisclosed amount of money and drove off in a Jeep Wrangler, Delmarto said.

When Burnett, 44, was stopped, officers found several hundred dollars in cash strewn on the floor of his car, Delmarto said. The teller identified Burnett as the robber, Delmarto said.

The handgun was later found to be a starter’s pistol, officials said.