Cerritos Bank Robber Sentenced to a Year in Prison

A Compton woman dubbed the "Plain Jane" bandit was sentenced today to one year in federal prison for robbing banks in Cerritos and Whittier.

Sylvia Helen Garcia, 38, pleaded guilty in November to the two heists, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. She was originally charged with committing six bank robberies throughout the Southland over four days last July.

Garcia admitted to robbing Chase bank in Cerritos on July 31.

She was arrested after the FBI received tips from people who had seen surveillance photos in media reports, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.

At the time, Garcia was driving a silver vehicle that matched the description provided by witnesses to some of the bank heists, Eimiller said. Additional evidence tying Garcia to the robberies was also recovered during the arrest, she said.

During the robberies, Garcia used notes and verbal commands to demand cash from tellers, in some cases specifying amounts of several hundred dollars, prosecutors said.

During an interview with a witness to one of the earlier robberies, the thief's appearance was described as that of a "plain jane," thus giving the bank robber the nickname, Eimiller said.

- City News Service contributed to this report.