New Santa Ana | Category Archives: Banking

A suspect in six bank robberies was arrested by the SAPD this afternoon

Posted on February 27, 2017 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, Fountain Valley, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Santa Ana bank robbery suspect arrested

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: Detectives Take Suspect Wanted In Six Bank Robberies In Custody

Suspect: Joseph Anthony Perez (27)

This is the sixth in a series of six bank robbery incidents in Santa Ana and Fountain Valley. At 3:13 p.m., the suspect entered the Bank of the West. After providing the demand note, the teller gave the suspect an unspecified amount of money along with a tracking device. After the suspect left the location authorities immediately began tracking the signal. Continue reading→

B of A awards a $25K grant to Goodwill of O.C. to serve O.C. veterans

Posted on June 16, 2016 by Editor Posted in Banking, Charities, Orange County, Santa Ana, Veterans 3 Comments

GOODWILL OF ORANGE COUNTY AWARDED $25,000 GRANT FROM BANK OF AMERICA TO SERVE O.C. VETERANS

Funds will further Goodwill’s Tierney Center for Veteran Services, resources for vets and their families, including job placement and housing assistance

SANTA ANA, Calif. — June 16, 2016 – Goodwill of Orange County announced today it has been awarded a $25,000 grant from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation to invest in its Thomas T. & Elizabeth C. Tierney Center for Veteran Services, Orange County’s new all-in-one resource for veterans living in Orange County and their families.

This grant by Bank of America will allow Goodwill to expand its comprehensive approach to serving local warriors and their families and conduct outreach to reach more of the local veteran population. The funds also help fulfill a $1.6 million one-to-one grant match with America’s Warrior Partnership (AWP), a national organization that seeks to unite community-based organizations to collaborate for an improved network of resources for veterans. The remaining dollars to fulfill the AWP grant match are funded by Goodwill through its successful social enterprise model. Continue reading→

B of A donates $10K to the Santa Ana Boys and Girls Club to help teens graduate

Posted on June 10, 2016 by Editor Posted in Banking, Charities, Education, Santa Ana Leave a comment

BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF SANTA ANA RECEIVES $10,000 GRANT FROM BANK OF AMERICA TO HELP TEENS GRADUATE AND PLAN FOR THE FUTURE

Grant Funds to Provide One on One Case Management for the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Ana’s Teen Empowerment Strategy – College Bound Program

Santa Ana, Calif. (June 10, 2016) – Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana received today a $10,000 workforce development grant from Bank of America to support more than 120 teens in the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Ana’s Teen Empowerment Strategy – College Bound program. This program provides one-on-one case management for teens, ensuring that they progress from grade to grade on schedule and are on a path to graduate high school on time with a plan for their future. College Bound helps provide valuable resources to teens so they are prepared for all that life holds once they graduate.

“Bank of America’s generous donation will give teens unprecedented access to academic support and valuable resources they need to place them on the path to success after graduation,” said Robert Santana, CEO, Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana. “Thanks to community partners like Bank of America, local youth have access to never-before-available opportunities that will help reinforce that college education is attainable.” Continue reading→

Parolee robbed a Santa Ana bank then was caught while fleeing in an OCTA bus

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, David Benavides, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Imagine getting out of jail then, as a parolee, making the decision to rob a bank? Well that happened this morning when an unarmed Joseph Springer Erickson, 34, robbed the Chase Bank branch located at 3600 South Bristol Street, at around 11:20 a.m., according to the O.C. Register.

Erickson handed a bank clerk a note demanding money. The teller gave him cash, but for perhaps he had second thoughts as Erickson then handed the money over to another bank employee before taking off on foot.

That is when this story got very weird. Erickson did not have a getaway car. So instead he got onto an OCTA bus that was working Route 57. Continue reading→

Former President of a Little Saigon bank and 15 others arrested for laundering narco money

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, Federal Government, Little Saigon, Santa Ana, Vietnamese, Westminster Leave a comment

Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 10, 2015

Sixteen Named in Racketeering Indictment Alleging Money Laundering Schemes Orchestrated by Former President of Orange County Bank

Two Other Money Laundering Indictments Unsealed as Part of Operation “Phantom Bank”

Federal authorities today arrested 11 defendants named in a sweeping racketeering indictment alleging a series of money laundering schemes that revolved around the former head of Saigon National Bank, based in Westminster, California, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Eileen M. Decker of the Central District of California. Four other defendants, who are named in separate indictments, were also arrested today.

The majority of the defendants arrested today are named in a racketeering indictment that was returned on Dec. 1 by a federal grand jury and unsealed today along with two other indictments returned by the grand jury over the past year. The three indictments charge a total of 20 defendants. Continue reading→

The SAPD looking for burglary suspects who used a victim’s credit card and checks

Posted on November 5, 2015 by Editor Posted in Anaheim, Banking, Crime, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: SAPD Detectives Request Assistance In Identifying Vehicle Burglary Suspects

Synopsis: On 10/21/15 between 7:45 and 08:10am, the victim’s vehicle was burglarized on the 1100 block of W. Stevens in the City of Santa Ana. Stolen items include the victim’s identification card and an Orange County Credit Union checkbook.

At 3:07 p.m., the unknown female (Suspect #1) deposited one of the victim’s checks into a SchoolsFirst FCU ATM (590 N. Euclid St, Anaheim). At 3:52 p.m., another unknown female (Suspect #2) used the victim’s identification card and check to purchase items at Food 4 Less (2140 S. Bristol St., Santa Ana) and is accompanied by an unknown male (Suspect #3). Continue reading→

Man loses his life savings to two men who told him the cash wasn’t safe in the bank

Posted on October 17, 2015 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, Santa Ana 2 Comments

Santa Ana Robbery Suspect

Two men stopped to ask a 67-year-old Santa Ana man for directions sometime last week, then struck up a conversation with the man about money, according to the O.C. Register.

The two suspects told the man that his money was not safe in the bank – and then showed him $1,500 in cash that they were holding. They then made a bet with the man that if he could withdraw his life savings from the bank without complications they would give him their money. Continue reading→

Bank robbery suspect arrested in Tustin

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, Tustin Leave a comment

NEWS, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts: Lt. Jeff Hallock, 714.904.7042, JHallock@ocsd.org

Carrie Braun, 714.647.1848, CBraun@ocsd.org

Bank Robbery Suspect Arrested

LAKE FOREST, Calif. (September 21, 2015) – On Monday, September 21, 2015, Orange County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Chandler Graham, 52, Los Angeles, in connection with an armed robbery at the Eagle Community Credit Union located at 23021 Lake Center Drive, in Lake Forest. Graham was arrested near the intersection of Red Hill Avenue and El Camino Real in the City of Tustin, following a short vehicle pursuit.

At approximately 10:46 a.m., Sheriff’s deputies responded to the Eagle Community Credit Union for a report of a robbery in progress. Responding deputies were provided a description of Graham and indicated he left in a tan or gold sedan. Approximately six minutes later, a deputy observed the vehicle matching the description travelling northbound Interstate 5, approaching Sand Canyon Road. The vehicle exited Tustin Ranch Road and a short vehicle pursuit ensued before the vehicle yielded near Red Hill Avenue and El Camino Real in the City of Tustin. Graham, the driver and lone occupant in the vehicle, was taken into custody without incident or injury. Continue reading→

Bandit who likes to wear hats strikes again at a bank in north Santa Ana

Posted on September 1, 2015 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, FBI, Michele Martinez, Santa Ana Leave a comment

A bank robber who liked to wear hats when he commits crimes has struck again – this time he robbed the Farmers & Merchants Bank at 1750 E. Seventeenth St., in Santa Ana, on Monday at around 4:15 p.m., according to the O.C. Register. This bank is located in the parking lot of a Superior Grocers and is across the street from a Wells Fargo Bank.

The FBI believes this is the same guy who previously robbed a Farmers & Merchants in Orange on Tuesday and a Bank of the West in Santa Ana on Thursday.

The FBI has dubbed the suspect the “pre-season bandit” because he likes to wear sports caps while he robs banks. Continue reading→

Man in a sports cap suspected of robbing banks in Orange and in Santa Ana

Posted on August 28, 2015 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, FBI, Orange, Santa Ana Leave a comment

A man who likes to wear sports team caps has robbed two local banks in the Cities of Orange and Santa Ana in the past week, according to the O.C. Register.

The man robbed a Farmers and Merchants bank at 1220 E. Katella Ave. this Tuesday at around 4 p.m. The Orange Police responded to that crime scene.

The man is reported to be between 25 and 30 years old. He stands about 5′ 11″ and weighs about 150 pounds. He walked into the bank wearing black sweater, blue jeans and a black Miami Heat sports cap with an orange bill, according to the Orange Police. Continue reading→

Transient robs the B of A in Downtown Santa Ana but a tracking device leads to his arrest

Posted on August 5, 2015 by Editor Posted in Banking, Crime, FBI, Michele Martinez, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Dia Chanh Diep, a 43 year-old transient who robbed a Bank of America branch located at 102 W. Fourth Street in Downtown Santa Ana, on Tuesday at 5 p.m., was arrested minutes later because the bundle of money he stole contained a dye pack and a tracking device inside, according to the SAPD.

Diep presented the teller with a note, which stated he had a gun and demanded money. Out of fear for her safety, the teller provided the suspect with an undisclosed amount of U.S. currency. The suspect fled the location on foot. Continue reading→

Big A Bandit arrested by the FBI and he turned out to be a Santa Ana resident

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Editor Posted in Anaheim, Banking, Crime, FBI, Fullerton, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Another embarrassment for Santa Ana. Turns out the so-called “Big A Bandit,” who got that name because he habitually wore an Angels baseball hat while committing a series of bank robberies in Orange County, lived in Santa Ana.

The man, Robert Paul Simmons, 51, was arrested on Tuesday night, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said, according to the O.C. Register. Continue reading→

B of A Charitable Foundation awards $222K in grants to 16 O.C. nonprofits

Posted on December 3, 2014 by Editor Posted in Banking, Charities, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Photo Credit: Mercy Housing Living Centers

December 3, 2014

Reporters May Contact: Alyssa Tran, (310) 854-8270, atran@webershandwick.com

Bank of America Charitable Foundation Awards $222,600 in Grants to 16 Orange County Nonprofit Organizations

Grants will help individuals with basic human services and build better financial lives

ORANGE COUNTY – The Bank of America Charitable Foundation today announced $222,600 in grants to 16 nonprofits in Orange County to help individuals and families build better financial lives. These grants will support the fight against hunger, access to housing and other basic human service initiatives that help communities thrive.

Basic human services, along with community and workforce development are top priorities because there is significant need in these areas in Orange County and across the country. According to the nonprofits grantees, more than 370,000 individuals will be impacted by the funding that serves low and moderate income residents. Continue reading→

Bank of America grants $155K to six Santa Ana nonprofits

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Editor Posted in Banking, Business, Charities, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Bank of America donates to OC non profits

Bank of America Awards $155,000 in Grants to 6 Santa Ana Nonprofits Supporting Community Development

Irvine, CA – Bank of America recently provided 12 Orange County nonprofits supporting community development a total of $305,000 in grant funding. Six of the nonprofits are in the local Santa Ana area and received a total of $155,000 in funding:

• Arts Orange County
• Discovery Science Center of Orange County
• Habitat for Humanity of Orange County Inc.
• Latino Center for Prevention & Action in Health & Welfare
• Pacific Symphony Association
• OneOC (formerly Volunteer Center of Greater Orange County Inc.) Continue reading→

Snowboarder Bandit convicted of robbing ten Orange County banks

Posted on November 8, 2013 by Editor Posted in Anaheim, Banking, Crime, Irvine, OCDA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Orange County District Attorney Press Release

For Immediate Release, Case # 12HF1290: November 7, 2013

MAN DUBBED “SNOWBOARDER BANDIT” CONVICTED OF COMMITTING ROBBERIES IN 10 ORANGE COUNTY BANKS

SANTA ANA – A man dubbed the “Snowboarder Bandit” was convicted today of committing robberies in 10 Orange County banks. Michael Brandon Franks, 30, Riverside, pleaded guilty to a court offer today to 10 felony counts of second degree robbery and two felony counts of attempted second degree robbery. He faces a maximum sentence of 10 years and six months in state prison at his sentencing, Jan. 17, 2014, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-34, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. Continue reading→