Robbery at Senior Club Puzzles Police

An early morning robbery at a Pasadena senior citizens social hall Saturday has police not only searching for the gunmen, but also wondering what the victims were doing.

Between 20 and 40 patrons of the Senior Social Club in northwest Pasadena were forced onto the floor while five men, armed with rifles and shotguns, stole their cash and valuables, Pasadena Police Lt. Randell Taylor said.

The incident started about 2 a.m., as patrons continued to arrive at the hall on the corner of Fair Oaks Avenue and Esther Street, just north of the Foothill Freeway. The robbers knocked and, when the door was opened, burst in and started taking watches, jewelry, wallets, credit cards and cash, Taylor said. One victim lost $3,700 in cash; the gunmen took $1,100 from another patron.

The bandits finished with the victims--some middle-aged, some in their 60s and 70s--in about half an hour, then left. No one was injured, Taylor said.

Police were not immediately called to the scene, however. Three of the victims went to Old Town Pasadena, about two miles away, and called police. Most of the victims had left the club by then, Taylor said.

One of the victims told police he recognized one of the gunmen as someone who frequented the neighborhood. No arrests have been made.

Taylor said officers “have no idea” what was going on at the club but added, “Of course, we’re looking into that.”