BURBANK--The Oak Lawn man arrested after fleeing a Burbank bank robbery is believed to be the robber the FBI nicknamed the "Playboy Bandit."
Edward Guajardo, 48, 4029 W. 99th Place, is charged with robbing the Archer Bank branch at 6400 W. 79th St. in Burbank Tuesday afternoon. A U.S. magistrate ordered him held without bail until a Dec. 4 hearing.
Though not yet charged with any other holdups, Guajardo appears to be the heavyset man who robbed two other banks, including a Charter One branch in Alsip Sept. 11, the FBI said.
Officials said Guajardo's large frame, the type of handgun he used and three baseball caps in his possession match that of the "Playboy Bandit" -- so named because of a cap bearing the Playboy rabbit logo that the robber wore in at least one earlier robbery.
On Tuesday, Guajardo, armed with a revolver, entered Archer Bank about 4 p.m. and demanded that tellers fill a duffel bag with cash, the FBI said. Guajardo was wearing a baseball cap, but authorities on Wednesday couldn't say if it had the Playboy logo.
After escaping with $6,153 in cash, including five marked "bait bills," Guajardo fled in a Ford Expedition with two male passengers, resulting in a high-speed chase by police before the Expedition collided with a Chicago police car at 63rd Street and Cicero Avenue, according to the FBI. It said all three men were taken into custody, but the other men weren't charged.
Inside Guajardo's Expedition, police found the revolver loaded with three bullets and a small bag containing the cash and clothing, including three baseball caps, the FBI said.
Summit police said the Expedition matches the description of a getaway vehicle in a recent 7-Eleven robbery in the village.
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