Cerritos Bank Bandit Indicted on Seven Counts of Bank Robbery

A man suspected of being the "Puffy Coat Bandit'' responsible for holding up a Cerritos bank and other bank locations in Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties was indicted Wednesday on seven counts of bank robbery.

Steven Dwayne Paulson, 46, was arrested Jan. 10 in Upland when a police detective stopped a motorist matching the description of the bank robbery suspect. He has remained in custody since on a parole violation.

The puffy ski jacket he wore in at least one robbery helped FBI agents come up with a moniker. In other holdups, he wore a plaid jacket and a baseball cap or a knit beanie, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.

Most of the time the robber used a demand note and, in some crimes, he simulated having a weapon under his coat, Eimiller said.

He was indicted on bank robbery charges stemming from heists on:

-- Dec. 20 at a U.S. Bank branch in Chino;   

-- Dec. 22 at Premier Service Bank in Corona;   

-- Dec. 28 at Mission Oaks Bank in Lake Elsinore;   

-- Dec. 30 at ;   

-- Jan. 3 at ;   

-- Jan. 7 at the same U.S. Bank robbed in Chino on Dec. 20; and  

-- Jan. 9 at a Comerica Bank in Rancho Cucamonga.  

The indictment, in reference to the hold-up at Chase Bank in Cerritos, states that Paulson took "approximately $6,320" from the location. 

- City News Service contributed to this report.