The reward for the "Ho-Hum Bandit'' suspected in a dozen Southern California bank robberies, including one in La Jolla, now stands at $15,000, an FBI agent announced Tuesday.
Citibank had previously put up $9,000 for information that leads to the apprehension of the bank robber, with the FBI contributing $1,000. U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo have since combined to add $5,000 to the reward fund, FBI Special Agent Chris Gicking said.
Most of his holdups have been in San Diego County, where his spree appears to have begun Feb. 27 with a robbery of a San Diego National Bank branch.
The "Ho-Hum Bandit" hit his 12th Southern California bank last Saturday, robbing a U.S. Bank branch in Laguna Beach. It marked the second time in a month that the suspect had targeted that Orange County location, Gicking said.
The day before, he held up a Citibank branch in Corona del Mar -- the same branch he robbed June 11, according to the FBI.
Gicking theorized that the bandit, who got his nickname because of his bland appearance, is robbing the same banks because he already knows the area and it's more convenient.
Police responded to Saturday's hold-up call at 9:22 a.m. The suspect handed a teller a note, demanding cash and saying he had a gun, and escaped with an undisclosed amount of cash, Gicking said.
The suspect is a white man in his 30s, about 5-foot-8 to 5-foot-9 and 160 to 170 pounds, with a thin build, brown hair and blue eyes. He is fair-skinned and usually wears some type of ball cap, faded blue jeans and white sneakers. At least twice, he has worn a Dale Earnhardt Jr. baseball cap.
His most recent stickup before the last two in Orange County was at a Bank of America branch in Cathedral City in Riverside County on July 15, Gicking said.
Other holdups attributed to the Ho-Hum Bandit include:
- San Diego National Bank, on March 9; - Chase Bank, San Diego, on March 25; - Citibank, San Diego, on April 2; - Citibank, La Jolla, on April 8; - Citibank, San Diego, on May 8; - Wells Fargo, San Diego, on June 5; and - U.S. Bank, Laguna Beach, on June 23.
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