OXNARD : Bank Holdup Called Similar to 3 Others

A man suspected of robbing three Ventura County banks by writing his demand notes on Manila envelopes robbed a fourth bank in Oxnard Thursday morning using a similar technique, authorities said.

The man robbed the Bank of A. Levy, 1830 Victoria Ave., about 11:30 a.m. and fled on foot with an unknown amount of money, said Lt. Stan Myers of the Oxnard Police Department.

It is the fourth robbery by the same suspect in Ventura and Oxnard in three weeks, and each time the robber produced a note demanding money and warning that he had a gun, said Gary Auer, agent in charge of the FBI’s Ventura office.

The first three notes were scrawled on Manila envelopes although Auer would not confirm that Thursday’s robber used the same kind of paper. He said only that the man produced a written note and that the robber’s technique was similar.

Tellers have not observed a weapon in any of the four robberies, Auer said.

The bank robber is described as a white male, about 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighing about 160 pounds. He is believed to be between 25 and 30 and has short blond hair, Auer said.