Busy South County Robber Hits One Bank for the Second Time
A bank robber suspected of a string of recent heists in South County returned to one of his old targets Saturday, holding up a San Juan Capistrano bank for the second time in less than two weeks, authorities said.
The man walked into a California Federal Bank on Del Obispo Street just before 1 p.m. and handed over a note that demanded money and claimed he had a gun, said Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. Tom Garner.
A cashier gave the robber an undisclosed sum and the man ran away, Garner said. Witnesses saw no gun or accomplices during the robbery, and no one was hurt, he said.
“As far as we can tell, he’s doing it by himself,” Garner said.
The robbery follows two other recent holdups with identical hallmarks. On Friday, a World Savings and Loan branch was robbed in Mission Viejo about 2 p.m. On July 6, the same man hit the CalFed branch in San Juan Capistrano, Garner said. The FBI is handling the investigation of all three robberies.
“It’s not real bright going back to the same bank,” Garner said, “but it’s not uncommon. They feel comfortable going back, for some reason.”
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