Suspects Arrested for a Take-Over Bank Robbery

January 29, 2001

"Suspects Arrested for a Take-Over Bank Robbery"
 

Los Angeles – On Friday, January 26, 2001, at 10:20 a.m., a take-over bank robbery occurred when two armed suspects entered the Wells Fargo Bank at 10235 Balboa Boulevard and announced a robbery.
The suspects, described as male African-Americans, armed with a shotgun and a semi-automatic handgun, ordered bank patrons and the security guard to the floor, and demanded entry to the tellers’ area, behind the protective barrier.
Once inside the tellers’ area, one suspect took cash from the cashiers’ drawers and left the bank.
A witness outside the bank saw the suspects get in a 2-door gray Nissan, and provided responding officers with the vehicle’s description and license plate number.
Shortly after the broadcast of the information, a Devonshire patrol unit observed the vehicle occupied by two men fitting the suspects’ description. A short vehicular pursuit ensued when the suspects refused to stop for the officers. The vehicular pursuit ended when the suspects exited the vehicle carrying a guitar case with them. The officers chased the suspects on foot through a school yard , and apprehended the suspects without incident. The guitar case was recovered, containing the shotgun, the semi-automatic handgun, and a back-pack with money.
The suspects are identified as:

James W. Miller, 19 years of age, a resident of San Fernando Valley.
Christopher Turner, 21 years of age, a resident of San Fernando Valley.

Both suspects were booked at Parker Center Jail for Bank Robbery. Bail was set at $160,000.00 each.
Detectives from Robbery-Homicide Division, Bank Section, and agents from the FBI are conducting the investigation.
This Press Release was prepared by Officer Eduardo Funes, Media Relations Section, 213-485-3586.