Dual Valley Bandit gets 125 months behind bars for series of bank robberies
A Pasadena man will spend more than 10 years behind bars for a series of bank robberies he committed last year in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, including a U.S. Bank in Burbank, federal authorities announced Monday.
Shownee Shon Smith, dubbed the “Dual Valley Bandit” by law enforcement, will be required to pay $20,285 in restitution in addition to serving his 125-month prison sentence.
From May to June, the U.S. attorney’s office said Smith, 41, committed six robberies in Pasadena, South Pasadena, North Hollywood, Tarzana, Woodland Hills and Burbank. In each case, he would hand a bank employee a threatening note demanding cash.
He was eventually arrested on June 10, immediately after attempting to rob a South Pasadena Wells Fargo at gunpoint. Authorities reportedly recovered a loaded shotgun and over $4,000 in cash.
In a criminal complaint filed against Smith after his arrest, FBI special agent Catherine Moore said Smith had confessed to officers that he committed the robberies after finding himself in debt.
“He had lost his home and business, due to money problems, and his landlord was going to evict him,” Moore said in the June 14 complaint.
Smith also confessed that he unsuccessfully tried to rob several other banks in Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks and Encino.
In the Burbank robbery, Moore said Smith got away with $700.
Twitter: @Andy_Truc
