NORWALK -- A suspect dubbed the scanner bandit for robbing banks with a police scanner in hand was identified Thursday by federal authorities.
FBI agents and police departments in Los Angeles and Orange counties are on the look out for the suspect, identified as 47-year-old Garry Allen Reeder of California, said Laura Eimiller, a Federal Bureau of Investigation's spokeswoman.
Reeder is suspected or robbing several banks in Norwalk, Orange Torrance, Tustin and Whittier. Authorities believe he moves from motel to motel, using the money to support gambling or drug addictions, Eimiller said.
Reeder -- who turns 48 on Friday -- is described as white, 5 feet 7 inches and 180 pounds with blue eyes and he may have a beard, Eimiller said.
In the most recent stickup at a Bank of America branch in Orange the suspect asked an employee about opening an account, according to the Orange Police Department.
The suspect showed the employee a black folder that looked like a day planner with what appeared to be a bomb inside, police said.
The device, which was left behind, was later found to be a fake, according to the FBI.
The Scanner Bandit is also suspected of a number of hold-ups, including a robbery at a Bank of America branch in Torrance Dec. 21, a U.S. Bank branch in Whittier Dec. 18, and a U.S. Bank branch in Norwalk Dec. 15.
Reeder has a history of arrests for bank robberies in California in the early and late 1990s, Eimiller said.
Anyone with information about Reeder is urged to call the FBI at 888-CANT-HIDE (888-226-8443).
FBI agents and police departments in Los Angeles and Orange counties are on the look out for the suspect, identified as 47-year-old Garry Allen Reeder of California, said Laura Eimiller, a Federal Bureau of Investigation's spokeswoman.
Reeder is suspected or robbing several banks in Norwalk, Orange Torrance, Tustin and Whittier. Authorities believe he moves from motel to motel, using the money to support gambling or drug addictions, Eimiller said.
Reeder -- who turns 48 on Friday -- is described as white, 5 feet 7 inches and 180 pounds with blue eyes and he may have a beard, Eimiller said.
In the most recent stickup at a Bank of America branch in Orange the suspect asked an employee about opening an account, according to the Orange Police Department.
The suspect showed the employee a black folder that looked like a day planner with what appeared to be a bomb inside, police said.
The device, which was left behind, was later found to be a fake, according to the FBI.
The Scanner Bandit is also suspected of a number of hold-ups, including a robbery at a Bank of America branch in Torrance Dec. 21, a U.S. Bank branch in Whittier Dec. 18, and a U.S. Bank branch in Norwalk Dec. 15.
Reeder has a history of arrests for bank robberies in California in the early and late 1990s, Eimiller said.
Anyone with information about Reeder is urged to call the FBI at 888-CANT-HIDE (888-226-8443).
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