'Geezer Bandit' might be wearing mask, driving BMW, FBI says

The FBI on Wednesday announced new information about the so-called Geezer Bandit series of 16 bank robberies.

Although he has been described as an elderly man, the FBI said that might be a disguise.

After his last robbery _ Dec. 2 in San Luis Obispo _ the Geezer Bandit might have escaped in a white BMW, the FBI said. He also dropped a day planner, now being reviewed at the FBI crime lab in Quantico, Va.

An investigation of surveillance video from the lSan Luis Obispo heist, along with interviews with tellers and other witnesses, suggest that the bandit may be a younger man wearing a mask and gloves, the FBI said.

"The robber was described as someone who appeared to be an elderly white male but may have been wearing a synthetic-like mask and gloves to conceal his true physical characteristics," the FBI said.

Also, when a dye pack exploded in a plastic bag with the money from the robbery in San Luis Obispo, the robber "sprinted away across the bank parking lot" -- not the gait of an elderly man.

The robber who became known as the Geezer Bandit first struck in August 2009. Of the 16 robberies attributed to him, 11 occurred in San Diego County.

A $20,000 reward is being offered for information leading to an arrest.

The bandit has been described as 60 to 70 years old. He demands money and threatens the tellers with a gun.

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-- Tony Perry in San Diego

Photo: A surveillance photo of the so-called Geezer Bandit during a Dec. 2 robbery at a Bank of America in San Luis Obispo. Credit: FBI