Bandit Who Has Robbed 8 Restaurants Sought

Police here and in Orange County are hunting for a robber known as the “sit-down bandit” who is suspected of robbing eight restaurants in the last week after masquerading as a hungry diner.

The robber typically enters restaurants near freeway onramps, takes a table, places a food order, then brandishes a gun and demands money.

In several cases he has robbed both the restaurant and patrons, authorities said. During one robbery, they said, he held a gun to a victim’s head and asked her if she wanted to die.

On Tuesday, the robber struck the Fish Market and Grill in San Juan Capistrano, Jenko Sushi in Mission Viejo and Villa Roma in Lake Forest.

“When he sits down, he’s obviously casing the place and when the opportunity is right, he takes it,” said Jim Amormino, a spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

The same bandit is suspected of robbing Mandarin City in Cardiff, the Mona Lisa Restaurant in downtown San Diego, the Taste of Thai in northern San Diego, Tio Leo’s Mexican restaurant in Carmel Valley, and Barolo Ristorante in the University City neighborhood of San Diego.

Restaurants do most of their business with credit cards and are not considered prime targets for stickups, police said. The bandit appears to be experienced in crime, they said.

“He’s cool,” Amormino said. “Chances are that he’s been in jail before. He’ll be in jail again.”

Given that he has waved a gun during each holdup, police said, the robber should be considered volatile and dangerous.