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‘Western Bandit’ deemed violent serial robber

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LOS ANGELES, Calif.–A violent serial robber who for more than a year has terrorized victims along a stretch of Western Avenue from Hollywood to South Los Angeles was suspected today in two more crimes.

Detectives believe the “Western Bandit” was responsible for a Jan. 8 armed robbery in which a witness was shot and wounded, and for an attempted robbery on the same day, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The same man may be responsible for one killing and is suspected of robbing a number of others since November 2011, police said.

The crimes have occurred in convenience stores and other businesses, generally between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m., along an eight-mile stretch of Western Avenue, according to police.

The suspect is described as a Black, between 5 feet 9 inches and 6 feet tall, with a “stocky build.” He has worn dark clothing and in some of the crimes he was seen riding a bicycle, police said.

The robber is “very violent” and “quick to use a firearm,” said Los Angeles police Lt. John Radtke, West Bureau detectives supervisor. Anyone encountering him should give up their property and not resist or run, he said.

The suspect could be the person who killed transgender woman Nathan Vickers in Nov. 2011, according to The Times.

Anyone with information about he Western Bandit was urged to call police at (213) 382-9470, or (877) LAPD-24-7.

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