Fountain Valley 'Wrong Way' Bandit Charged in Bank Robberies

A 40-year-old man suspected of being both the "Wrong Way" and "Drawstring" bandit is facing 10 felony counts stemming from five bank robberies and one attempted heist in Orange County, authorities said today.

Jose Luis Arciga of Santa Ana was arrested by Garden Grove police on Friday and charged Tuesday with seven counts of second-degree robbery and three counts of attempted second-degree robbery, with sentence-enhancing gun use allegations, Deputy District Attorney John Maxfield said.

Arciga got the "Wrong Way" bandit nickname because in one of the holdups he allegedly committed, he started walking out the door he came in, realized his mistake and then made a u-turn to go out an exit door, according to FBI Special Agent Chris Gicking.

"The teller freaked out and thought he was coming back to kill her, so she passed out," Gicking said.

The "Drawstring" bandit moniker stemmed from a Tustin bank holdup in which the robber brought a large bag with a drawstring on it to carry his loot, Gicking said.

Arciga is charged with robbing seven tellers in five bank branches Bank of the West in Garden Grove, Centennial Bank in Fountain Valley, First Bank and Trust in Costa Mesa, Nuvision Federal Credit Union in Costa Mesa and U.S. Bank in Tustin between Aug. 18 and Dec. 30, Maxfield said. Arciga is also charged with attempting to rob a sixth bank, the prosecutor said.

Arciga pleaded not guilty on Tuesday and was ordered held on $250,000 bail. He is next due in court March 20 for a pretrial hearing.