FBI focuses on AK-47 Bandit
The FBI said Tuesday it feels a sense of urgency to find the man who has robbed financial institutions across the United States, including one in Rexburg, and seriously hurt a California police officer.
The man known as the AK-47 Bandit because of the assault rifle with a drum magazine he carries in the robberies.
On Nov. 7, 2012, he made threats to employees at East Idaho Credit Union in Rexburg and shut them in the safe. He got away with an undisclosed amount of money.
He has also hit various banks in California, as well as Washington state and Nebraska. During his getaway after robbing California Bank & Trust in Chino, he shot a police officer. The incident occurred Feb. 29, 2012, and it was the first bank he hit.
“He has shown he is not afraid to shoot someone, and experience tells us he is not going to stop robbing banks until we catch him,” said Special Agent Kevin Boles in a news release.
The AK-47 Bandit’s most recent heist was in Nebraska on Aug. 22.
He is white, 25 to 40 years old, about 6 feet tall, with light-colored eyes and a stocky build. During the robberies, he wears a dark balaclava ski mask, body armor, and black gloves. His getaway car is often a dark gray four-door Nissan Maxima with chrome accents of model year 2009 to 2011.
The FBI, affected financial institutions and the City of Chino are offering a combined reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to his arrest. If you know anything about his identity or whereabouts, call (800) CALL-FBI or email bandit@chinopd.org. You can remain anonymous.
“We feel like we are racing the clock on this guy,” said Boles. “If we don’t get him soon, things could end badly and someone else might get hurt.”
