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Suspected 'Dreaded Bandit,' Getaway Driver Charged In Bank Robberies

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Two men arrested Friday in connection with a series of takeover-style bank robberies in San Francisco and San Mateo made an initial appearance in court this afternoon but postponed their entry of plea to Thursday.

Andre Mitchell Brown, 57, and Javier Jenkins, 44, both San Francisco residents, have each been charged in San Francisco Superior Court with two felony counts of attempted robbery with the use of a firearm, according to prosecutors.

Brown also faces a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm, a felony, while Jenkins has been charged with permitting a loaded firearm in a vehicle, a misdemeanor.

Bail was set at $450,000 each and the two were ordered to return to court on Thursday for entry of plea.

San Francisco police arrested Brown and Jenkins Friday during an investigation of a bank robbery suspect the FBI had dubbed the "Dreaded Bandit" because of his habit of wearing disguises that included fake dreadlocks.

The FBI announced a $10,000 reward last month for information after a series of takeover-style armed bank robberies that began in April and included two in June and July at the same Comerica Bank branch on Union Street in San Francisco.

The suspect in each of those robberies was around 6 feet tall with a slim build, and wore a fake dreadlock wig, fake beard, hat and sometimes white face paint, according to police.

He struck about once a month at banks in San Francisco and San Mateo, taking over banks at gunpoint and moving employees and customers into the vault area while taking large sums of money.

Investigators identified Brown as a suspect and kept him under surveillance until his arrest on Friday, when he was stopped as he allegedly prepared to enter a bank in the 5400 block of Geary Boulevard.

He was wearing a wig, fake beard, sunglasses and gloves at the time and was carrying a loaded revolver, according to police.

Jenkins, who was allegedly acting as a getaway driver, was arrested as he waited in a 2006 Lexus GS 300 nearby.

Police said they are working with the FBI to establish Brown's connection with other robberies.

The charges filed in Superior Court this week are related only to the incident on Friday that led to Brown and Jenkins' arrest. Alex Bastian, a spokesman for the district attorney's office, declined to comment on whether additional charges might be filed but said the case remains under investigation.

Brown was recently released from prison after 27 years and is a parolee on active federal probation for armed bank robbery, according to police.

Court records show Jenkins also has prior convictions on charges including attempted murder and assault with a firearm.

 

© Copyright 2016 by CBS San Francisco and Bay City News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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