Deputy Is Attacked by Suspected Hair Bandit

A man who appears to be the person police have dubbed the “hair bandit” attempted to run down a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy with his car Monday morning, authorities said.

The confrontation began at about 8:30 a.m. when the deputy saw a man holding a woman in a chokehold at a pay phone near Whittier Boulevard and Leonard Street in East Los Angeles. Relying on a tip, police later identified the man as Michael Howard, 46, of Norwalk.

The deputy chased Howard in his patrol car and Howard climbed into a 1991 gray Buick Riviera parked in a nearby alley. When the deputy approached the car on foot, the man pressed the accelerator and attempted to hit the deputy, Lt. Larry Lincoln said.

The deputy, who jumped out of the way, fired three to four rounds as the man drove off. Investigators said they could not confirm whether the suspect was wounded and would not release the deputy’s name. The woman was not injured.

Officials said there is a possibility that Howard is the hair bandit, who has struck repeatedly over the last few weeks in Long Beach and nearby cities. There were large chunks of brown hair and a pair of scissors left at the scene of the shooting.

“Our detectives are working with the sheriffs and sharing information,” said Long Beach Police Sgt. Steve Filippini.

The hair bandit has been described as white, 5-foot-10 to 6-foot-3, with a heavy build, sandy blond or light brown hair, and a small mustache and goatee. The man does not take any money, but grabs women by their hair from behind and uses a knife or scissors to cut large portions of their hair.

Howard matches some of the physical descriptions.