Photo: YinYang / E+ / Getty Images
A Fullerton police officer fatally shot a man in his 70s who robbed a bank. The police department said it received a report about a potential robbery at a Wells Fargo bank just after 5 p.m. on Tuesday (March 26).
Witnesses said the masked man stormed into the bank and demanded cash from the teller. He was holding a white box and told people inside the bank that it was an explosive device. He threatened to detonate it if the teller didn't give him money.
After stealing an undisclosed sum of money, the man exited the bank and was shot by an officer outside.
"Police had their guns drawn, and the door to the bank opened, and the [suspect] came out," witness Jessica Serne told KTLA. "They said, 'Drop!' but he didn't listen, so they shot him. One shot, and that was that."
Because of concerns that the man had a bomb, medical aid was not immediately rendered. Instead, the bomb squad was called and checked the device, which turned out to be a fake bomb.
After the bomb squad secured the scene, the man was declared dead.