3 Rob Bank; Pair Held Hostage
GARDEN GROVE — In a dramatic chain of events that began with a “takeover†bank robbery Friday by two men and a woman, one suspect was arrested after breaking into a nearby home and holding a couple hostage, police said. The other two escaped.
The robbery occurred about 9:15 a.m. when the trio, all in their 20s, entered the Bank of America branch in the 11400 block of Knott Avenue in Garden Grove and demanded money, authorities said.
“Two jumped over the teller counter,†an FBI investigator said. “One of them said, ‘Don’t touch anything’ and then told employees to open a drawer and get down. No weapons were observed.â€
The robbers left the bank in a red Jeep with tens of thousands of dollars, according to a witness.
Near Orangewood and Western avenues, at least one of the robbers abandoned the car and ran across railroad tracks to a residential neighborhood, carrying bundles of cash in a light blue plastic wastebasket, the witness said.
As the man jumped a fence into a backyard in the 11500 block of Santa Maria Street in Stanton, he dropped the money, the witness said.
“I was walking out the front door and that’s when I saw him,†the witness said. “He looked real nervous . . . like he didn’t belong there.â€
The witness called 911, and dozens of investigators from Garden Grove police, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI aided by helicopters and dogs combed the area.
Meanwhile, the man broke into a nearby house and kidnapped the occupants, police said.
The witness, a close friend of the couple who talked to them afterward, said the robber got in through an unlocked front door.
“They were scared for their lives,†the witness said.
The assailant forced the 50-year-old husband inside a water heater closet and his 46-year-old wife into a hall closet and then ransacked the house, taking about $40 from a purse and other valuables, the witness said.
Police dogs later caught the scent of the man and led officers to the house. They arrested Kevin Agnas Brown, 22, of Los Angeles on suspicion of robbery, burglary and kidnapping.
Police later recovered at least some of the money, which the witness said showed signs that dye packs had exploded.
The couple were freed without injury after the two-hour ordeal. They declined to comment late Friday.
The FBI is investigating whether Brown is linked to similar robberies in Southern California.
Allen Donikowski, a neighbor who comforted the couple afterward, said Friday’s chain of events could have ended “much worse.â€
“Somebody could have gotten killed,†Donikowski said. “I’m just relieved that nobody got hurt.â€
Also contributing to this report was Times photographer Craig Fujii.
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