Reward offered for ‘AK-47 Bandit’ who shot Chino officer

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A reward of up to $100,000 is being offered for information leading to the arrest of a man who shot and wounded a Chino police officer last year during a bank robbery, the FBI said Wednesday night.

Known as the ‘AK-47 Bandit,’ the man stormed into a California Bank & Trust branch last February wielding an assault rifle and wearing a dark ski mask and body armor.

Before entering the bank, the robber made a 911 call to Chino police from a nearby pay phone saying he had a bomb and would detonate it. ‘This is not a drill. Do you hear me?’ he said, according to a copy of the call released Wednesday by the FBI. Authorities believe the call was a diversionary tactic.

AUDIO: 911 call by ‘AK-47 Bandit’

As he fled the scene, the robber opened fire on a patrol officer. The officer was seriously wounded, authorities said. The robber was driving a dark gray Nissan Maxima with four doors and tinted windows.

The robber is believed to have also targeted a Bank of the West on March 12 in Vacaville, Calif. He is also believed to have robbed a Chase Bank in the Seattle area on July 6, the FBI said.

Anyone with information is asked to call (855) 9 BANDIT or to send an email to bandit@chinopd.org.

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-- Robert J. Lopez
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