Bank Robberies Decline in Temecula

The number of bank robberies per year is declining in Temecula, according to sheriff's statistics.

Seven bank robberies happened in 2009, and the number slipped down in each year since, according to the statistics.

Only four happened in 2010, and only three in 2011. So far in 2012, only one happened, with more than a third of the year over.

The most recent bank robbery was on April 6 at the in French Valley. . They took duffle bags full of cash and escaped with bills flying out of their stash. The suspects are still at large.

In October 2011 at , if he did not hand over the cash in the drawers.

The same bank chain was robbed twice in one week in April 2011. The   was . The teller obliged, and the man is still at large.

, was . He was later .

In late 2010, a man was shot by deputies after leading them on a high-speed chase from on Ynez Road, which he robbed by passing a threatening note to a teller, to Menifee, . He was later .

This is the fewest number in years, and two out of three of the suspects were caught in 2011, according to statistics.

This fact gives the sheriff's department no rest, said sheriff's Deputy Alberto Martinez. "One bank robbery in a community is too many," he said. "Our department responds to every bank robbery and uses all its resources  to come to a conclusion."

Law enforcement's first step during such a robbery is to canvas the area to find the culprit, then interview witnesses and comb the scene for clues. Investigators follow every lead all the way to the end, Martinez said.

"Even if it's a rumor, we follow up on it," he said.

The kinds of robberies have changed in recent years. This year, the only robbery was committed with a handgun. In 2010, three of the four robberies were committed with handguns -- the other was listed as "other" in regards to the weapon used.

In 2011, no handguns were used at all, despite having an unusual high number of bank robberies. Two were listed as "other," and the other was listed as "hands, fists, feet, etc."

In 2009, all seven robberies were listed at "other."

The years 2007 and 2008 in terms of the number of robberies and the methods used. During each year, five bank robberies happened. Two each year were done with handguns, two each year were listed as "other," and one each year was listed as "no weapon noted."