MAN, 61, DENIES GUILT IN HOLDUPS OF 4 LOCAL BANKS.

Byline: Lee Condon Daily News Staff Writer

A 61-year-old man suspected of being the "baseball cap bandit" pleaded not guilty Tuesday in U.S. District Court to charges that he robbed four Glendale banks.

John Duane Buckland was arrested Jan. 29 at the American Motel in Glendale, several hours after a Glendale branch of Great Western Bank was robbed.

In all, authorities said they believe the baseball cap bandit took $3,000 from four banks during a spree of robberies last fall and in January.

The robber did not threaten bank tellers with a weapon or verbally, but typically would slip them a note demanding money, said Chahe Keuroghelian, a spokesman for the Glendale Police Department.

At the time of the arrest, police said Buckland may be linked with seven robberies committed in Glendale over the past several months. But the federal indictment was on four counts of bank robbery.