Bearded Bank Robber Wanted For Hitting 15 Banks Throughout Northern California

NORTHERN CA- A serial bank robber dubbed the "Bearded Bandit" has been connected to 15 different incidents and is being sought by more than a dozen law enforcement agencies in the Bay Area and elsewhere in Northern California, FBI officials said today.

According to police in Concord, one of eight Bay Area cities struck in the spree, the bank robber has stolen more than $24,000 since the first robbery was reported on Feb. 12. The man has been tied to at least 11 bank robberies, one attempted robbery and three casing incidents, according to the FBI. Most recently, he was suspected of back-to-back bank robberies in Contra Costa and Solano counties on Monday.

He started at a Chase Bank branch at 3492 Mt. Diablo Blvd. in Lafayette around 3:30 p.m. that day before he was involved in another robbery about an hour later at a Bank of Stockton branch at 230 Main St. in Rio Vista. The Bearded Bandit's alleged first appearance was a Feb. 12 robbery of a Chase Bank at 3906 Washington Blvd. in Fremont, a city he returned to last Thursday when he robbed a U.S. Bank at 46848 Mission Blvd.

He also was connected to a robbery at a Wells Fargo at 6778 Bernal Ave. in Pleasanton on Thursday. The Bearded Bandit has often struck banks within the same day, according to a list of connected incidents supplied by the FBI. He was linked to three separate robberies in Elk Grove, Sacramento and Dixon in one day on March 1, according to the FBI. On March 4, he cased a U.S. Bank at 905 First St. in Gilroy before robbing a Wells Fargo two blocks away several hours later.

He cased Wells Fargo banks in Watsonville and the unincorporated Monterey County community of Prunedale on March 16 before returning to Gilroy to rob that U.S. Bank at 905 First St. in Gilroy the same day. Between then, he robbed a Wells Fargo bank located at 4599 Clayton Road in Concord on March 11 and a U.S. Bank at 4440 Tassajara Road in Dublin on March 15. In each of the cases, the man tells bank tellers that he wants to cash a check or ask a question before presenting a demand note, according to the FBI.

The Bearded Bandit is named for the full, trimmed beard he is said to have. He has been described as a white man in his late 20s or early 30s who stands at 5 feet 10 inches tall. FBI officials said the suspect has worn a variety of sunglasses, hats and layered shirts with dark pants during the incidents. Investigators believe he has been using a black vehicle, possibly a Ford Mustang.

Anyone with information on the suspect is asked to call the FBI's Sacramento office at (916) 481-9110 or its San Francisco office at (415) 553-7400.

Tips can also be provided to the local police departments where bank robberies have occurred, since each department is jointly investigating the case.