Suspect in Credit Union Robbery Caught by FBI

A Massachusetts man, suspected of leading a group of Antelope Valley robbers that authorities dubbed the “Fast Food Bandits,” was arrested Thursday in Las Vegas, the FBI reported.

James Douglas Pridgen, 43, was wanted in connection with at least 10 robberies last year, including the Dec. 16 armed takeover of the Edwards Federal Credit Union at Edwards Air Force Base, said FBI Special Agent Charles Empey in Lancaster.

Las Vegas authorities told Empey that tips from local residents led them to arrest Pridgen without incident at the apartment of an acquaintance, who was not arrested.

Pridgen, who police said wore a black ski mask and usually carried a 9-millimeter pistol during the robberies, was not armed when he was arrested. He was scheduled to be arraigned in Las Vegas today when a federal judge will also determine whether he can be returned to Los Angeles.

Empey said Antelope Valley investigators knew Pridgen had left the area but did not know where he went.

“We thought he was going back to Massachusetts,” he said.

Pridgen’s alleged robbery partners, David Daniel Thomas Wilkerson, 20, and Darrell Lane McClain, 19, were arrested in late December. Authorities have linked Pridgen to a greater number of robberies than Wilkerson or McClain.

Los Angeles County sheriff’s detectives say the trio’s crime spree began last year with a series of at least 10 takeover robberies at fast-food restaurants, including Burger King, McDonald’s and Der Wienerschnitzel, as well as Salvation Army thrift stores. The final crime they are accused of is the heist at the credit union at Edwards Air Force Base. The amount of money taken has not been revealed.

Most of the crimes were described by witnesses as “takeover robberies,” in which suspects typically take command of businesses and everyone in them at gunpoint, usually shouting orders and brandishing weapons. Takeover robberies pose a greater risk of gunshots being fired than do other types of robberies.