Man Sought in Connection with 17 Bank Robberies in Four Week Period Arrested this Afternoon in Los Angeles
| FBI Los Angeles February 18, 2009 |
A man suspected of robbing 17 banks in one month was arrested this afternoon by agents of the FBI, announced Salvador Hernandez, Assistant Director of the FBI in Los Angeles. Brian Keith Robinson, 49, of Los Angeles, was taken into custody without incident at a residence in Los Angeles.
Agents and multiple police departments in and around Los Angeles were investigating the bank robberies linked to a serial bandit known to law enforcement as the “Salt & Pepper” Bandit; a moniker derived from witness descriptions of the bandit’s graying hair.
Since January 5th, the Salt & Pepper Bandit had been linked to seventeen bank robberies in multiple cities, listed below. During the robberies, the bandit threatened to start shooting if the victim tellers did not comply with his demands for cash. In addition to verbal demands, the bandit also passed a note when he approached the teller’s window.
After the Seal Beach bank robbery on 1/10, detectives with the Seal Beach Police Department developed information and identified Robinson as the possible suspect in the series of robberies linked to the Salt & Pepper Bandit; however, Robinson continued to rob banks and elude agents and police for several weeks. In an attempt to elicit information as to the bandit’s whereabouts, photographs, as well as the possible identification of the subject, were released to the media. As a result, several leads were generated, one of which led to Robinson’s location and subsequent arrest today.
- U.S. Bank Santa Monica 1/5/09
- CA National Bank Los Angeles 1/6/09
- Washington Mutual Los Angeles 1/6/09
- Citibank Encino 1/8/09
- Union Bank of CA Los Angeles 1/8/09
- Washington Mutual Seal Beach 1/10/09
- Wells Fargo Los Angeles 1/15/09
- Citibank Los Angeles 1/15/09
- Citibank Covina 1/16/09
- First Federal Bank Los Angeles 1/16/09
- Washington Mutual Santa Monica 1/17/09
- First Bank Beverly Hills 1/20/09
- Citibank Glendale 1/22/09
- Bank of America West Los Angeles 1/24/09
- Bank of America Manhattan Beach 1/24/09
- First Federal Bank Beverlywood 2/2/09
- First Federal Bank Beverlywood 2/6/09
Robinson will be afforded an initial appearance before a U.S. magistrate in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles on Friday, February 20 th .
This case is the result of an investigation by the FBI, the LAPD, Seal Beach PD, Santa Monica PD, Covina PD, Beverly Hills PD, Glendale PD and Manhattan Beach PD.
Bank surveillance photographs of current bank robbers may be found by visiting www.labankrobbers.org.