BRIEFLY IN PUBLIC SAFETY

Suspect wanted in robbery of two banks

Huntington Beach police are on the hunt for a man they suspect of robbing two Huntington Beach banks in the last month and threatening the tellers he will return.

Known as the “Jelly Belly Bandit,” he is described as male, 35 to 40 years old, 6 feet tall and 225 to 250 pounds, with a large nose, fat lips, brown eyes and long sideburns, according to Huntington Beach police. He got the nickname because of his appearance, police said.

He was seen Dec. 27 driving off from Wells Fargo Bank on Beach Boulevard in a 2000 to 2002 silver Toyota Tundra or Nissan Titan pickup truck. Police also connect him to the robbery of a Union Bank on Adams Avenue Dec. 17.

Anyone with information on his identity is asked to call Huntington Beach Police at (714) 375-5066.

Freeway crashes injure several residents

Multiple accidents throughout the Huntington Beach area caused injuries and snarled traffic one day last week.

A pair of accidents Dec. 27 on the San Diego Freeway (I-405) caused a 30-minute SigAlert near the McFadden exit, according to a California Highway Patrol dispatcher. Officers requested a SigAlert at 10:18 a.m., Officer Katrina Lundgren said.

CHP logs indicate accidents in the northbound carpool lane near McFadden Avenue and a separate three-car collision at the Bolsa Avenue exit, Lundgren said.

At least one person was injured in the carpool lane crash. The lanes were cleared and the SigAlert canceled at 10:53 a.m., she said.

Just minutes earlier, a two-car crash at Springdale Street and Slater Avenue hospitalized the drivers, both Huntington Beach residents, one of whom was airlifted to the hospital in critical condition, police said. A 3-year-old passenger was not harmed, police said.

A gray Toyota Camry was eastbound on Slater when it crashed into a white Chevy Suburban going south on Springdale, according to police. The 49-year-old Huntington Beach woman driving the Camry was flown by helicopter to UCI Medical Center in Orange and was listed in critical condition.

The 38-year-old driver of the Suburban was rushed there by ambulance in serious condition, while her passenger, age 3, did not need immediate treatment.

Police are still investigating the Springdale crash and ask any witnesses to call (714) 536-5666.

Truck flips on I-15, killing both passengers

Two Huntington Beach residents were killed in a Rancho Cucamonga truck crash early Christmas morning, authorities said.

Driver Kimiko Van Alstine, 27, and passenger Justin Juris, 28, were going south on the I-15 freeway at 3:37 a.m. when the truck veered right and hit the steel guardrail, according to CHP.

The car continued off the side, rolled over twice and hit a concrete pillar. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.

The California Highway Patrol’s Rancho Cucamonga office is investigating the crash.

— Michael Alexander