Man robbed of $10,000 outside of Sherman Oaks Wells Fargo

CBSLA.com: The Rundown (July 21 AM Edition)

The man who was robbed outside of a Sherman Oaks Wells Fargo said he'll never forget the footsteps running toward him.

"As soon as I heard the footsteps the guy squatted down and tried to grab something from my arm," said William. "I walked out with a bag."

William, who asked CBSLA to not give his full name, said he was inside Wells Fargo for about 45 minutes getting a bag filled with $10,000 of cash for mid-year house expenses.

He walked out of the doors of the bank and over to his car. Within seconds, a man dressed in all white ran up to him and tried to steal William's money. 

He got away briefly by jumping over a wall but fell over with the suspect standing above him.

"It was just in pure fear and then I saw his gun," said William. "As I was falling back, the gun was pointed at my face and I just threw the bag as far as I could."

Within moments, the gunman picked up the cash, ran back to his Mercedes with a getaway driver inside and drives off. William believed that someone inside the bank tipped the robber off since others came out before him. 

"There's six other people that came out before me, all softer targets all in cars next to them and for whatever reason they chose me," he said. 

 William said he's grateful to have walked away with just scratches on his arm and legs, as Detectives with the Los Angeles Police Department continue to search for the suspects.

"I was super scared for about 10 seconds — most scared I've probably been in my life," he said. "Then right after the most grateful I've ever been in my life."

William said that Wells Fargo should have better security in place to prevent crimes like this from happening.

"They just immediately went into corporate mode — this is not our responsibility, not our liability," he said. "Literally I am bleeding on the pavement."

A spokeswoman for Wells Fargo says the bank is cooperating with the investigation and that the safety and well-being of its customers is a top priority. They did not respond to questions of any changes to security following the robbery. 

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