3 Quickly Arrested in Bank Robbery : Crime: Following electronic signal planted in money from Lake Forest credit union, authorities capture suspected thieves in car on Riverside Freeway.

Authorities following an electronic signal tracked down three suspected robbers Tuesday, taking them into custody shortly after they allegedly held up an Orange County Federal Credit Union at gunpoint, officials said.

The foiled robbery came a day after an attempt to hold up a Lake Forest bank was botched when the suspected robbers mistakenly walked into an accountant’s office next door and then couldn’t get into the bank or start their getaway car, said Sheriff’s Lt. Dan Martini. Sheriff’s officials believe the same robbers may have been responsible.

In Tuesday’s heist, two of the robbers--dressed in tan outfits and utility belts--walked into the credit union in the 23700 block of Mercury Road at 10:17 a.m. and said they were there to fix the phones. One of the robbers also wore a surgical face mask, Martini said.

Once inside, they pulled out handguns and led employees to the rear of the credit union, taking money from the vault and teller drawers before fleeing on foot.

Martini said the robbers picked a credit union swarming with deputies, on one of Lake Forest’s most active corners, near City Hall.

“There are tons of deputies there,” Martini said. “These guys were not very smart.”

They were tracked minutes later by an Anaheim Police Department helicopter, which picked up an electronic signal planted in the money, leading law enforcement officials to a brown Nissan Stanza that was headed east on the Riverside Freeway, authorities said.

Cynthia Shirrell Cyprian, 27, of Moreno Valley, was driving the car. Hiding in the back seat was Robert Dwayne Scott, 27, of Long Beach and officers found Curtis Guy Jackson, 26, of Compton in the trunk. They also found the tan outfits, the guns and the money, Martini said.

All three were booked into Orange County Jail on suspicion of bank robbery. The FBI will also investigate, Martini said.

One day earlier, two people wearing ski masks and hooded sweat shirts and carrying handguns at another Lake Forest location stopped a female employee at the entrance of an accountant’s office at 8:34 a.m. and forced her inside, demanding money from her and another worker.

The women then broke the bad news to the gunmen: The bank was next door.

Undaunted, the robbers took the women hostage and walked toward the bank, but officials there had already heard the commotion and locked the doors. The women broke loose and ran, and the robbers decided to make their getaway.

They fled to a white 1995 Lincoln reported stolen from Los Angeles, but didn’t get far.

“The engine started, but they could not drive the vehicle as the transmission fluid had leaked out,” Martini said.

The robbers then ran to a nearby parking lot and fled in a blue car driven by a third man, Martini said. They were last seen heading toward the Riverside Freeway, Martini said.

Investigators are “looking at the possibility that this attempted robbery may involve the same suspects as the federal credit union bank robbery,” he said.