Police investigating string of Fresno bank robberies

Police are investigating a recent string of Fresno bank robberies — two of which occurred in succession Thursday morning — possibly involving the same suspect.

The first two robberies happened May 11 and Saturday, Lt. Mark Salazar said. On May 11 about 10:50 a.m., the Westamerica Bank at 2440 Tulare St. in downtown Fresno was hit. On Saturday around noon, it was the BBVA Compass Bank at 1015 W. Shaw Ave. in northwest Fresno.

The two banks robbed Thursday were the Wells Fargo Bank at 1206 Van Ness Ave. in downtown Fresno and the Bank of the West at 515 E. Shaw Ave. in the Fashion Fair plaza. The first robbery happened about 9:20 a.m.

The scenario is always the same: a black man who looks in his 40s, about 200-210 pounds with a thin build, shaved head and clean-shaven appearance, enters the bank. In all robberies, “the suspect approached the teller and demanded money. The teller complied and the suspect walked out with the money,” Salazar said.

During Thursday’s robberies, the suspect delivered threatening notes to the bank employees telling them they were being robbed, Lt. Joe Gomez said. The notes demanded specific amounts of money.

In surveillance footage of some of the robberies, the man is seen wearing on separate occasions a baseball cap, aviator shades and shirt with the number 76.

Police were on the lookout for the suspect’s escape vehicle after Thursday’s robberies with the help of a search helicopter. Gomez said police were able to find the vehicle — an older blue small SUV with out-of-state license plates — in the back parking lot of the Valley Inn on North Parkway Drive off Highway 99 about a half hour after the second robbery.

The vehicle was abandoned, and it was not clear if the car was stolen. Police did not find the suspect in the inn, Gomez said, adding police also searched the Motel 6 a couple blocks away on North Crystal Avenue, but were unsuccessful.

It is not known how much money the suspect has stolen, if he was armed in any of the robberies and if anyone else was involved. It is also unknown if a getaway driver was involved Thursday’s robberies.

The suspect was still at large Thursday.

Anyone with information on the robber is asked to call the Fresno Police Department’s Street Violence Section robbery unit at (559) 621-2423 or Fresno Crime Stoppers at (559) 498-STOP.

This story was originally published May 28, 2015 at 7:04 PM with the headline "Police investigating string of Fresno bank robberies."