Masked Gunmen Hold Up Bank

Four men--three of them armed and wearing nylon stocking masks--held up a Bank of America branch in a takeover robbery that took less than one minute to complete, federal authorities said Thursday.

The first bandit walked into Bank of America in the 8400 block of Laurel Canyon Boulevard about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, on the pretense of opening a checking account, said John Hoos, a spokesman for the FBI’s Los Angeles bureau.

A second bandit followed him into the bank and both of them jumped over the counter, as two more accomplices entered from behind to watch the lobby.

One of the two men behind the bank counter ordered employees onto the floor, and another man holding a large handgun shouted orders to employees and patrons, Hoos said.

The fourth man urged the men behind the counter to “hurry up” with the robbery, Hoos said.

“I’m sure they were in and out in less than a minute,” Hoos said. “These types of robberies go down very quickly.”

The suspects were described as being in their late teens to mid-20s, Hoos said.

The holdup was the 284th bank robbery this year in the seven-county region covered by the Los Angeles FBI office. Nearly a third of them have been takeover robberies, Hoos said.