Geezer Bandit

On Monday, the "Geezer Bandit" pulled his his tenth bank heist in San Diego since August. He is called the "Geezer Bandit" because, by all appearances, he is in his seventies. He walked into a San Diego bank, pulled a revolver, and demanded money. According to authorities, after the robbery, the man fled. Some speculate that the "Geezer Bandit" is not in fact a geezer, but a man disguised as a "geezer".

Most people are able to spot a disguise. Unless the disguise is courtesy of a Hollywood make up artist, it would be easy to identify a disguise when right in front of you. Perhaps the teller was so rattled by the sight of the revolver, that they did not take the time to examine the man who was robbing them. Still, it is difficult to see how an old man could "flee." Most 70 year old men cannot run, let alone flee. If the man bounded out the door, that would be a good indication that he was wearing a disguise.

Anyone can rob a bank. It is not difficult. All you have to do is walk in and give the teller a note. You do not even need a gun. In many ways, robbing a bank is easier than making a withdrawal. Even a 70 year old man can do it. The hard part of robbing a bank is getting away.

How a 70 year old man can get away defies comprehension. Most men 70 years old move at a very slow pace. They certainly cannot flee. In some of his heists, the bandit was even carrying an oxygen tank. An elderly man with an oxygen tank would not be difficult to follow, let alone catch, even if he had a get away car parked right outside. (I cannot imagine a 70 year old man with an oxygen tank parking his get away car a block away.) Yet in ten robberies, no one has seen fit to follow him out the door. Evidently, no one has even looked out the window.

Many banks have security guards. These men are trained to prevent bank robberies. So far, they have been unable to prevent a 70 year old man with an oxygen tank from tottering out the door and getting away. Perhaps worse still, police in San Diego (presumably on alert due to the spate of armed bank heists) have been unable to respond in time to catch the Geezer Bandit. The bandit remains elusive even after 10 heists. Either banks in San Diego are hiring 80 year old security guards and near sighted tellers, or John Dillinger is alive and well in Southern California.