Bank Robbery Timing Gets a Close Look

Santa Monica police say they are trying to determine whether it was by plan or by chance that two men who robbed a Santa Monica bank Monday arrived just minutes after a courier had delivered a large amount of cash.

But it was not just the amount of cash taken--$176,000--that set this robbery apart from a routine bank robbery. There was also the wild cops-and-robbers freeway car chase, complete with flying bullets.

The short chase on the Santa Monica Freeway ended Monday at dusk with the arrest of two men who authorities said had robbed the Bank of America branch in downtown Santa Monica. The chase and arrest caused the closing of the eastbound lanes of the freeway for 2 1/2 hours during the evening rush and snarled traffic for miles around.

Authorities said the incident began Monday about 5 p.m. when a man entered the Bank of America branch at 1301 4th St., brandished a gun and demanded money from the bank’s commercial cashier, according Karen Gardner, speaking for the FBI. Santa Monica police identified the man as Ronald Murphy, 43, of Los Angeles.

Gardner said the gunman told the bank employee, “Put all the money in--you don’t want to get shot, do you?”

Because the suspect entered the bank only minutes after a courier delivered money to the bank, Santa Monica police Sgt. Gary Gallinot said the department is trying to find out if Murphy knew of the bank’s delivery schedule.

“It would be some coincidence if the timing occurred by chance,” Gallinot said. “We’re looking for connections.”

After filling a bank bag with “in excess” of $176,000, police said, the robber left the bank via a rear door into an alley. Outside the bank, they said, he shot at a witness who apparently was trying to record the license plate number of the getaway car, a red 1960s Mustang with a white top. The witness was not hit, police said.

The robber and the driver, identified by police as Prasad Rohitesh, 21, of Los Angeles, were seen heading east a short while later in stop-and-go traffic on the Santa Monica Freeway, authorities said.

Santa Monica police gave chase with four patrol cars and two motorcycles. They traded gunfire with the suspects for about a mile, from near the Centinela Avenue exit to the San Diego Freeway interchange. Bullets fired by the officers punctured the Mustang’s gas tank, blew out the back window and hit the car’s body numerous times, Gallinot said.

Finally, officers shot out its tires, and the car was forced to stop, police said.

The gunfire continued after the chase ended, and both men were hit, Gallinot said. None of the bullets in the shootout struck any other people or vehicles.

Murphy was reported in fair condition Wednesday at UCLA Medical Center with a bullet wound in his torso.

Rohitesh, who was only grazed by a bullet, was treated and released to the custody of Santa Monica police, Gallinot said.

Both were booked under suspicion of bank robbery, Gallinot said.