Armed robber strikes US Bank on Grand A man wielding a semi-automatic pistol robbed the Pacific Beach branch of US Bank on Grand Avenue just after 10 a.m. on March 16. The suspect forced a bank security guard into the lobby of the bank, announced he was there to rob the facility and threatened to shoot bank employees if he did not receive money, according to police reports. No one was injured and the suspect remains on the loose and is considered armed and dangerous. Witnesses described the suspect as a black male in his late 20s to early 30s, about 6-feet-2-inches and 200 pounds. The robber was wearing a dark beanie, large, oval sunglasses, a dark-blue jump suit and dark knit cap. Anyone with information is asked to contact the FBI at (858) 565-1255 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477. — Mariko Lamb

Woman’s club event to benefit WWII veterans The Mission Beach Woman’s Club (MBWC) is preparing for its eighth annual spring fundraiser event on Saturday, March 31, with proceeds slated to support the aging and dwindling population of World War II veterans in San Diego. Proceeds will benefit the Honor Flight San Diego program, which celebrates the service of World War II veterans and facilitates an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., where veterans are given the opportunity to visit and experience the national WWII Monument and are given richly deserved recognition. Honor Flight San Diego is a nonprofit organization founded with the goal of taking every qualified World War II veteran in San Diego to the Washington-based memorial that was built to honor their sacrifice and dedication. The funds raised will cover all expenses, including airfare, meals and accommodations. Top priority is given to the senior veterans and those who may be terminally ill, according to the fundraiser’s organizers. MBWC members said time is short because many of the remaining World War II veterans in San Diego — by some estimates as few as perhaps 300 or so around the San Diego area — are in their late 80s and early 90s. MBWC members also said that in addition to money raised for the Honor Flight program during the March 31 event, a private donor has agreed to match every dollar raised. The MBWC spring fundraiser takes place from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Mission Bay Yacht Club, located at 1215 El Carmel Place in Mission Beach. Admission is free, and the fundraiser is open to the public (21 and over). The event will feature a silent auction, refreshments, games and prizes. For more information, contact MBWC president Maruta Gardner at (858) 488-8956 or MBWC spring fundraiser co-chairs Cathy Fillmore at (858) 864-5797 or Jolene Orr at (619) 804-9499. Filmmaker hospitalized after naked rant in PB The man best known for co-founding the nonprofit organization Invisible Children and for creating the documentary film “Kony 2012” that went viral online is expected to be hospitalized for several months after being diagnosed as having a “brief reactive psychosis” that caused him to run naked and ranting through a Pacific Beach neighborhood on March 15. Jason Russell, 33, was detained by police and sent to a local hospital for psychiatric treatment after displaying the bizarre behavior that included running naked in and out of traffic and pounding his fists on the sidewalk at the intersection of Ingraham Street and Riviera Road in Crown Point. Due to the nature of statements he was making, officers questioned his ability to form criminal intent, and it was determined that medical evaluation and treatment — not arrest — was the appropriate course of action, according to San Diego police spokeswoman Lt. Andra Brown. “Obviously, those are things that are not normal or rational behavior, so that’s why the officers took the action that they did,” she said. Invisible Children CEO Ben Keesey released a statement on the nonprofit’s website, saying Russell was hospitalized after suffering exhaustion, dehydration and malnutrition. “He is now receiving medical care and is focused on getting better,” read the statement. “The past two weeks have taken a severe emotional toll on all of us, Jason especially, and that toll manifested itself in an unfortunate incident.” — Mariko Lamb

Student-run free clinic to host annual gala The UC San Diego Student-Run Free Clinic Project — which includes a site in Pacific Beach — will host its annual fundraiser and awards ceremony on Saturday, March 31 at the UCSD Price Center Ballroom at the La Jolla campus. Funds help provide free medical, dental, pharmacy, acupuncture, legal and social services  to San Diego’s working poor and homeless. More than 2,000 San Diegans rely on its comprehensive integrative health services every year.  The Student-Run Free Clinic Project is run by 200 UC San Diego School of Medicine and Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences students under the supervision of 100 licensed professionals including physicians, pharmacists, dentists, lawyers and social workers. The project has four clinical sites, including one at Pacific Beach United Methodist Church.  For more information, call (858) 534-6160, or visit www.meded.ucsd.edu/freeclinic/benefit_dinner.php.