Bank robbery investigators including FBI agents and detectives with the Major Crimes Bureau have a few leads in Tuesday’s holdup at the Chase Bank in Newhall but remain tight-lipped about their clues.
Questions about similarities, meanwhile, and a possible link between Tuesday’s holdup and an almost identical one two weeks ago remain unanswered.
Shortly before 5 p.m., a lone male walked into the Chase Bank branch on Lyons Avenue at Apple Street and walked out with an undisclosed amount of money, having warned a teller he had a gun although no gun was seen.
“They are working on a few leads and do not wish to publicize anything currently,” FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller told The Signal Wednesday.
What was revealed Wednesday was that detective from both law enforcement agencies are comparing notes.
“Agents did respond with LASD counterparts,” Eimiller said.
As for detectives assigned to the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department’s Major Crimes Bureau, like their FBI counterparts are keeping their cards close to their chest.
“Major Crimes indicated that it’s an ongoing investigation and they are not releasing a press release yet,” LASD spokeswoman Nicole Nishida told The Signal Wednesday.
Details about Tuesday’s robbery remain sketchy.
As the joint probe continues and details about Tuesday’s robbery remain sketchy, the search continues for the man who brazenly robbed the Wells Fargo branch in Newhall in mid-day two weeks ago.
On June 12, shortly before 3 p.m., a lone male walked into the bank branch of Wells Fargo near the intersection of Lyons Avenue and Wiley Canyon Road and gave a note to a teller demanding money and indicating he had a gun, Shirley Miller, spokeswoman for the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station confirmed for The Signal at the time.
No gun was seen, no shots were fired and no one was reportedly hurt in the incident, Sgt. Dan Peacock said at the time.
The only description of the robbery suspect that investigators are releasing was that he wore a brown baseball cap and a white shirt.
No description of Tuesday’s bank robbery suspect was released.
At least two of SCV’s bank robberies ended with arrests made elsewhere.
The search for a bank robber dubbed the “whitewashed Bandit” because he wore a white suit and a white fedora ended with the arrest of a Bakersfield man in Covina, about 10 days after he allegedly robbed the U.S. Bank branch on Newhall Ranch Road at Gateway Village in February 2016.
A woman dubbed the ““Bombshell bandit” was arrested in Nevada in September 2014, less than three months after she robbed the Bank of the West branch on Magic Mountain Parkway at McBean Parkway.
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