FBI Offers Reward for “Cotton Ball Bandit”

The FBI is offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to the arrest of a bank robber dubbed the "Cotton Ball Bandit."

The suspect allegedly robbed seven banks in the North Bay since December 2012.

Officials said the suspect's latest bank robbery was on Sept. 4 in San Rafael. His routine is that he enters a bank, approaches a teller and presents a demand note. The suspect wears a brown, knit, winter beanie with ear flaps and a "cotton ball" on the top.

FBI and local police believe the suspect is connected to the following bank robberies:

  • Sept. 4, 2013: Redwood Credit Union, 209 Third Street in San Rafael
  • Aug. 21, 2013: Wells Fargo Bank, 427 Corte Madera Town Center in Corte Madera
  • Aug. 2, 2013: Citibank, 101 Tiburon Boulevard in Mill Valley
  • July 17, 2013: Chase Bank, 437 Corte Madera Town Center in Corte Madera
  • Jan. 22, 2013: Union Bank, 800 Redwood Highway in Mill Valley
  • Jan. 9, 2013: Union Bank, 575 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in Greenbrae
  • Dec. 12, 2012: Chase Bank, 401 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in Greenbrae

The suspect is described as a 40- to 50-year-old white man, standing about 6 feet tall, medium build, blond hair and scruffy facial hair. He is known to wear a brown knit beanie and has worn a black rain coat, black leather gloves and eye glasses.

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