Police Surround Bank and Capture Robbery Suspect

With more than 20 police officers surrounding a downtown bank Thursday afternoon, a robbery suspect walked outside, dropped to his knees and gave up.

About a dozen employees and customers were inside the Home Savings of America at 143 W. 5th St. when the robbery unfolded at 2:15 p.m., said Oxnard Police Sgt. Fred Sedillos.

No one was injured and at no time was anyone considered a hostage, said police spokesman David Keith.

Arrested was Andrew Bruce Thompson, 36, a parolee recently released from prison after serving time on a theft conviction, Sedillos said. The sergeant described Thompson as a drifter. Police refused to say how much money was taken but did say it was recovered.

The robber was unarmed and used only a demand note and verbal threats, said Gary Auer, agent in charge of the Ventura County FBI office.

Bank employees told police the robber, who was wearing a T-shirt and jeans, handed a note to a female teller and made verbal demands, Auer said. The teller pushed a secret alarm and then walked away and went to a bank manager, he said.

The robber then handed the note to a second teller and demanded money and that teller complied.

Meanwhile, an employee called 911 and a bank manager alerted employees to the robbery by sending a computer message to terminals throughout the building, Auer said.

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Another employee was able to alert an officer working in a one-man police storefront next door to the bank, Sedillos said. He did not know whether the bank employee called the substation or was able to leave the bank as the robbery was in progress.

One bank employee was able to leave the building before the robber, Auer said. Police briefly detained him because they were unsure who he was, witnesses said.

When the robber emerged, there were a few tense seconds when he raised his arms in the air, then suddenly reached into his pants pocket and retrieved a pair of eyeglasses, witnesses said. Police were screaming at the robber to freeze, witnesses said.

“That’s when we realized something really big was going on,” said Rick Aldrich, who was inside a photo studio across from the bank.

Two square blocks surrounding the bank at 5th and A streets were sealed off for more than three hours. Crowds gathered behind squad cars and barriers of yellow police tape. Traffic in the area slowed to stop-and-go as rush-hour approached.

Neighboring businesses were not evacuated, but police ordered employees away from plate-glass windows. Officers established a command post in a bridal shop across the street from the bank.

Erin Reese, 20, had come from Santa Paula to pick up her wedding gown when police rushed in, herding her and other customers into the rear of the store.

“This is going to be in my wedding scrapbook,” she said later. “It’s a moment to remember.”

Meanwhile, those remaining in the bank were told to come out individually. From across the street, the bank manager identified her employees.

“The door opened and it was just people with their hands up coming out,” said Mark Cruz, 19, who watched from a nearby rooftop.

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The Oxnard Police SWAT team searched the building for more than two hours. A police spokesman said the search was painstakingly slow because of all the nooks and crannies in the flagstone building, a historic landmark in the city.

“The last thing we want is to think we have a lone gunman and then find out we don’t,” said spokesman Keith.

Bank employees and customers were interviewed in a drugstore next door to the bank as the SWAT team searched the building.

Sedillos said police questioned at least two drivers parked in front on the bank and released them.

Times staff writer Steve Chawkins contributed to this story.