SUSPECT ARRESTED IN BANK HOLDUPS : LANCASTER PAROLEE LINKED TO ROBBERIES.

Byline: Patricia Farrell Aidem Daily News Staff Writer

A convicted drug user wanted in five bank robberies in the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys was arrested this week, investigators said Wednesday.

Jeffrey Michael Burgener, 21, arrested Tuesday night in North Hollywood in connection with a drug case, is believed to be the ski-masked bandit who has been hitting the region's banks since March, said FBI Special Agent Brent Robbins.

``We anticipate this will go to the grand jury for an indictment,'' Robbins said.

Burgener, a suspect for about a week in the string of robberies, was arrested by Los Angeles police who picked him up on suspicion of being under the influence of methamphetamine, said Lt. Tim Peters of the Santa Clarita Valley sheriff's station. He is being held without bail on a parole violation pending further charges.

Juan Ortiz, assistant general supervisor for the state Department of Corrections' Parole Division, said Burgener was on parole following his release in July from prison.

Burgener served nearly three years in the Chuckwalla Valley State Prison in Blythe following his 1994 conviction on possession of methamphetamine, Ortiz said. Since his release, he lived in Lancaster, held some odd jobs and reported regularly to his parole office. That ended three weeks ago, midway through the spree of robberies that have plagued local banks, Ortiz said.

He was linked to the four Santa Clarita holdups and one in Lancaster that began March 18 in a joint investigation by the parole division, the FBI and Sheriff's Department narcotics detectives.

``The rumor on the street was that he was committing some robberies,'' Peters said.

Burgener is believed to be the gunman who held up Downey Savings in Lancaster; Valencia National Bank, Citibank and Wells Fargo Bank in Canyon Country; and American Savings Bank in Newhall.

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Photo: (Color) BURGENER