2 Armed Robbers Flee With Cash From Bank

Two gun-wielding robbers took over a Studio City bank Friday evening, forcing terrified customers to the floor while one of the robbers jumped a counter and grabbed an undisclosed amount of cash from tellers’ money drawers, authorities and witnesses said.

No one was injured during the two-minute holdup at the Great Western Bank in the 4000 block of Laurel Canyon Boulevard, Los Angeles police said. About 15 customers and 12 employees were in the bank when the robbery took place about 5:45 p.m., a witness said.

The gunmen escaped through a rear door, authorities said.

One of the robbers held a pistol and the other brandished what appeared to be a shotgun or rifle, said Special Agent Paul DeFlores of the FBI’s Los Angeles office, which is investigating the robbery.

“I looked to my right and five windows down, there was a man with a gun in his hand and he was standing on the counter,” said a Studio City man who requested anonymity. “Then the accomplice says, ‘Everybody on the floor.’ I just hit the floor behind a sofa chair and my wife was against the wall with her head covered.”

The witness said one of the gunmen pointed a handgun at the face of one of the tellers and warned, “Don’t push any buttons.”

The robber then went from drawer to drawer, grabbing handfuls of cash. His accomplice stood in the center of the bank, holding a gun on the prone customers, the witness said.