A woman dubbed the "Bad Hair Bandit" because of wigs she used as disguises pleaded guilty today to committing bank robberies in four states.
Cynthia Lynn Van Holland, 48, a former prison nurse from Idaho, pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento to 21 counts of bank robbery, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.
According to court documents, Van Holland committed robberies California, Washington, Oregon and Montana. During the early stages of the investigation, the Seattle Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation dubbed the suspect the "Bad Hair Bandit " because she used a series of unusual wigs and disguises in the robberies.
Van Holland was arrested following the robbery of the Bank of the West branch in Auburn on Aug. 15, 2011. An alert witness saw a woman running to a car after the robbery and noted the license plate number. Shortly afterward, Placer County sheriff's deputies arrested Van Holland and the driver of the vehicle, Van Holland's husband, Christopher Alonzo.
Her arrest ended the robbery spree that authorities said began in December 2010.
Van Holland is to be sentenced on Oct. 10 by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller.









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