Robber Wearing Santa Hat Hits Encinitas Bank

A man wearing a Santa Claus hat robbed a bank on Saxony Road Friday afternoon, fleeing with cash after giving a teller a demand note indicating he had a gun, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The robbery occurred at at 135 Saxony Rd. around 3 p.m., according to Detective R. Stevenson. The suspect wrote the demand note on a deposit slip, which said: “My kid is dying and I can’t afford to pay I’m scared and have a gun please no GPS or red dye.”

The suspect fled out the front door after taking money from the teller, according to Stevenson. A witness saw the suspect flee to a parking lot of a business next to the bank, where he got into a beige- or gold-colored 2003-2005 Honda SUV with a spare tire mounted on the rear covered in black vinyl. The suspect was last seen driving north on Saxony Road.

The suspect was described as a white male adult in his 50s, 5 feet 4 inches to 5 feet 6 inches tall, thin build and clean shaven wearing a gray sweatshirt, blue jeans, a red and white Santa hat and white-framed sunglasses.

This was the second robbery this week at the bank. a man in a black ski mask demanded cash from tellers, who complied. No arrests have been announced in connection with Wednesday’s robbery.