GLENDALE : Man, 72, Arraigned in Bank Robbery

A July 19 preliminary hearing has been set for a 72-year-old man accused of trying to rob a Bank of America in La Crescenta while wearing a fake beard and mustache, officials said.

Antonio Estrada of Los Angeles faces four counts of attempted second-degree robbery, second-degree burglary, having a concealed weapon in a vehicle and carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle, court officials said.

Estrada was arraigned at Glendale Municipal Court and pleaded not guilty. He remains in custody with bail set at $20,000.

He drove Friday afternoon to the parking lot of the Bank of America, 3141 Foothill Blvd., said Sgt. Dan Cox of the Crescenta Valley sheriff’s station in La Crescenta. A passerby noticed the man’s disguise and called police, suspecting that he may have been a getaway driver in a robbery, Cox said. Estrada then allegedly entered the bank through a back door, where a teller became suspicious of his actions and set off the bank’s silent alarm.

“He looked somewhat nervous,” Cox said. “He saw that the line was too long and walked back out.”

Glendale police and sheriff’s deputies soon arrived and arrested Estrada, who was wearing a fake beard, mustache, a baseball cap, green-tinted sunglasses and a blue jumpsuit. Investigators also recovered a handgun, a starter pistol and a small amount of cocaine.

Based on FBI reports, Cox said Estrada is not connected with any previous bank robberies. He had no idea what prompted the 72-year-old man to allegedly attempt to rob the Bank of America last week.