A 67-year-old man accused of robbing an Oakland bank twice in less than a week has been charged with numerous felonies, Alameda County prosecutors said Monday.
Authorities said Michael Savage carried out armed robberies at the Wells Fargo branch at 901 Franklin St. in Chinatown on July 9 and July 15. Both robberies occurred shortly after 9 a.m.
Authorities said Savage held an employee at knifepoint in the July 9 robbery. In each instance, he “entered the bank, demanded money and left with an undisclosed amount of cash,” Oakland police said.
Investigators linked him to the robberies through witness statements, surveillance video, physical evidence and follow-up police work, authorities said.
Prosecutors charged Savage with robbery, false imprisonment and other felony offenses. The criminal complaint also includes sentencing enhancements alleging he has multiple prior convictions for violent crimes that qualify as strikes under California law. Court records show Savage was convicted of second-degree robbery in 2014 and 2017.
“These were brazen robberies that terrorized bank employees and customers, and left innocent people in fear for their lives,” District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson said in a statement.
Savage was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Alameda County Superior Court at the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in Oakland. He remained in custody at Santa Rita Jail as of Monday afternoon.
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This article originally published at An Oakland bank was hit twice within 6 days. Police say it was the same armed robber.