Two tellers at a La Jolla bank have identified a man now linked to the “Ugly Plaid Bandit” bank robbery series, so named by FBI agents because of the garish plaid shirts he wore during hold-ups.
John Edward Roberts, 47, was ordered to stand trial on charges of holding up the San Diego National Bank at 4270 Executive Square and six other banks. According to testimony at the preliminary hearing, the robber took approximately $2,300 from both tellers on Dec. 14, 2007.
Roberts will appear in San Diego Superior Court this week to get a trial date set. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and remains in the downtown central jail without bail.
The tellers at the La Jolla bank were among 11 other witnesses in the March 24 hearing, and they both said they noticed a plaid flannel shirt the robber was wearing. Other tellers also testified they noticed the shirt style.
“He seemed nervous and shaky,” said one La Jolla bank teller, who said he forced her to get money from a second bank employee.
The robber told tellers at all the banks that he had a gun, but none of them saw a weapon.
Roberts had shaved his head while in jail and sported a goatee, but the tellers who testified identified him as the robber despite his change of appearance. A teller at a La Mesa bank had included a hidden dye pack with the money, but Roberts took it apart at the counter and left it there.
Special FBI agent David Eaton testified he arrested Roberts on Dec. 24, 2007, at a motel in El Cajon. His motel room was searched and Roberts was asked about the plaid flannel shirts since officers could not find any. Roberts told them “he threw (them) away at one point,” Eaton said.
Eaton also told Judge John Einhorn that Roberts admitted to robbing the banks and did so to obtain money so he could buy heroin and other drugs.
“He told us he spent it on drugs right away. (He) didn’t keep much money at any time,” Eaton said.
Roberts identified himself as the robber on bank photos, he added.
The losses in the “Ugly Plaid Bandit” series exceed $12,523. The other banks were located in Carmel Valley, Grossmont Center in La Mesa, Hillcrest and Clairemont.
Because Roberts has been convicted of robbing seven banks before, he faces 37 years on each count if he is convicted and sentenced consecutively under the “three strikes” law, according to court records.
Roberts’ attorney sought psychological evaluation for him as he told a judge he doubted his mental competency to stand trial. A psychologist reported to the court that Roberts appeared to be faking mental illness, and a judge later found he was competent for trial.
Someone attempted to mail crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia to Roberts in jail, but they were intercepted by sheriff’s deputies, according to court records.