By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com
A man wearing a fedora and a fake beard has robbed a Grass Valley bank for a second time in a spree that began four months ago.
The latest robbery occurred at 4:10 p.m. March 31 at the Bank of the West, 736 Taylorsville Road, in Grass Valley, according to an FBI news release.
The man is described as white, approximately 40 to 50 years old, with gray or salt-and-pepper gray hair. He is between 5 feet 9 inches and 6 feet tall and has a slim build.
As part of his disguise, the man wears a fedora-type hat and a fake goatee, leading law enforcement officials to nickname him the "fake-bearded fedora bandit." In each of the four robberies, he has displayed a handgun and typically used a black, eco-friendly type bag commonly found at supermarkets to carry away the loot. The bag has straps and unidentified green writing on it, according to the news release.
The spree, which has targeted Bank of the West branches, began that began Dec. 22 at the same Grass Valley bank that was robbed March 31. It continued with the Feb. 18 robbery (top right photo) of the Bank of the West at 2160 Lake Tahoe Blvd. in South Lake Tahoe and the March 8 robbery of the Bank of the West, 200 Bear St. in Kings Beach.
In each robbery, the man approached the teller counter and demanded money. In at least one instance, he attempted to disguise his voice by speaking with clenched teeth. As he approached the teller counter during the March 31 robbery, he told the teller, "Here we go again," the news release said.
According to witness descriptions and surveillance photos, the man wore a light-colored parka or rain jacket that has hood with dark-colored trim, and a light-colored mock turtle-neck shirt, black pants, black shoes and black sunglasses. In two of the robberies he wore black gloves.
The robberies are being investigated by the Grass Valley and South Lake Tahoe police departments, the Placer County Sheriff's Department and the FBI.
Anyone with information regarding the latest robbery is asked to contact the FBI in Sacramento at (916) 481-9110, the Grass Valley Police Department at (530) 477-4600, the South Lake Tahoe Police Department at (530) 542-6100, or the Placer County Sheriff's Department at (530) 581-6330.
A reward of up to $2,500 has been offered by Bank of the West for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the robberies.
Call The Bee's Cathy Locke, (916) 773-6866.
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