Crime & Safety
FBI: ‘Cotton Ball Bandit’ Still at Large
A suspect arrested in connection with a Terra Linda heist is not the serial robber who's hit nine Marin County banks in the last year, an FBI spokesman said.
It took less than 12 hours for police to arrest a San Rafael man accused of robbing a Terra Linda CitiBank last week.
And according to the FBI, he’s not the serial robber who’s eluded authorities during a nearly 12-month span in which he’s hit nine Marin County banks.
Alphonso Miquel Pazos, 56, has been charged with robbery and burglary for allegedly using a replica gun to hold up a CitiBank on 1004 Northgate Drive on Friday morning. He was arrested later in the day in Sonoma County.
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The “Cotton Ball Bandit” - so named because of the pom-pom ball atop the brown knit hat with earflaps he’s worn during most of his heist - is among the most prolific serial bank robbers in recent Marin County history.
He’s been tied to nine bank robberies in Marin County in the last year. His most recent heist occurred at a Terra Linda Wells Fargo Bank on 600 Las Galinas Avenue on Oct. 30 shortly after 9 a.m.
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The FBI and local authorities are conducting coordinated investigations.
“From my understanding of the investigation I don’t believe we have anybody in custody relating to those bank robberies associated with the cotton ball bandit,” FBI spokesman Peter Lee told Patch.
“The investigation is ongoing.”
Police say the “Cotton Ball Bandit” usually strikes on Wednesdays during the 9 a.m. hour and always wears a hat – usually the knit cap, although he’s worn a baseball cap in other robberies, including the Oct. 30 heist.
The FBI is offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to a conviction of the “Cotton Ball Bandit.”
The agency's wanted poster includes four photos of him from surveillance video taken from separate incidents.
Anyone with information about either of these cases is asked to call San Rafael Police at 415.485.3000 or Crime Stoppers at 1.800.222.TIPS (8477). This phone number accommodates all languages. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward.
Tips can also be made online through Silent Witness atwww.srpd.org/tips. The FBI has offered a $2,500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the robber known as the “Cotton Ball Bandit.”
Information can be left on the FBI’s confidential tip line at 415-553-7400.
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