FBI ASKS AID IN HUNT FOR BANK ROBBER.

Byline: Lisa Van Proyen Staff Writer

FBI agents sought the public's help Wednesday to find a robber who in less than four months has hit six banks, including two in Woodland Hills and two in Glendale.

Agents have nicknamed him the ``Turn-And-Walk Bandit,'' because he commands tellers to ``turn around and walk toward the back of the bank and not to look back,'' said Cheryl Mimura, an FBI spokeswoman in the Los Angeles office.

The bandit is described as an African-American man in his early 40s, 6 feet to 6 feet 3 inches tall, 160 to 175 pounds with a thin build, and short black-and-gray hair.

He usually wears a baseball hat or a ``Gilligan-style'' fishing hat, said FBI Special Agent Catherine Moore of the Los Angeles office. He also has a mustache and wears dark plastic frame prescription glasses.

The man most recently robbed Citibank at 6203 Topanga Canyon Blvd. in Woodland Hills on Oct. 24, the FBI said.

His first known hit was on July 7 at Bank of America at 345 N. Brand Blvd. in Glendale, Mimura said.

Other banks he has targeted include City National on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, Universal Bank on Erwin Street in Woodland Hills, California Bank and Trust on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, and U.S. Bank on N. Brand Boulevard in Glendale.

He has not displayed any weapons nor threatened to have any, Mimura said. Rather, he usually waits his turn in line for the next available teller and then verbally demands money before fleeing on foot.

``He seems to be pretty confident,'' Moore said.

Authorities asked that anyone with information contact the FBI at [phone].

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Photo:

Bank surveillance captures the ``Turn-And-Walk Bandit.''