San Luis Police are looking for a suspect who robbed the Higuera Street Bank of America on Friday, Dec. 2.
According to police, a male subject entered the bank at about 5:39 p.m., which located at Higuera and Santa Rosa streets. Witnesses say the suspect waited in line for the next available teller with whom he approached handing the teller a note demanding money. The suspect was pointing a gun at the teller.
According to police, the suspect was given an undisclosed amount of money which also included a dye pack devised to explode over the money, permanently staining it bright red.
Police say the suspect took the money and left through the main doors leading to the parking lot.
The suspect, according to Lt. Bill Proll of SLOPD, “was walking through the parking lot when the dye pack exploded and where the suspect dropped some of the money and the note used in the robbery.”
Proll states in a press release the suspect made his way toward Marsh Street where he dropped more of the money.
Proll also said that a citizen who was unaware of the robbery saw a vehicle leave a parking spot on Marsh near Toro Street at a high rate of speed about the same time as the robbery. The vehicle is described as a white BMW Five Series. It is unknown whether the two events are related at this time.
Proll said the suspect is described as an elderly white male about 6’4” tall weighing 175 pounds. He was wearing black slacks, a white shirt, a black tie, a blue baseball hat and glasses during the robbery.
A witness who was in the bank at the time of the robbery stated the suspect’s face looked like plastic, referring to some sort of mask or makeup. The witness thought the suspect was purposely trying to look elderly.
“Our investigators are looking into the possibility this bank robbery is related to numerous other bank robberies that have occurred in Southern California with the same suspect description. If anyone has any information regarding these robberies please call the San Luis Obispo Police Department or Crime Stoppers,” said Proll.
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Ben Banuchi has been a journalist in the Atascadero/Paso Robles area since 2002, and is currently a freelance writer and reporter. He can be contacted at bbanuchi@unitedreporting.com