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As Casefile continues into its 10th year, we're currently taking a very short break from new episodes.
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Brand new cases will be returning on May 23rd for premium subscribers and May 30th for the regular feed.
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But, in the meantime, we're continuing our special bonus series Casefile Archives, a collection of releases
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revisiting the earliest years of the show along with previously unreleased premium episodes.
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Rest assured that these are additional bonus releases and will not replace our standard schedule. We will still be
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delivering the same number of new episodes this year as we did last year. Casefile Archives is simply a way to
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mark the 10th year, revisit some older episodes, and share stories that newer listeners may not have heard before.
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For the re-released episodes, we fully edited, polished, re-recorded, and freshly produced them from start to
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finish to match our current production standards. They are not complete rewrites. Our aim isn't to reshape the
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cases or alter the original storytelling, but to preserve them as they were first told while bringing them
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up to the level of production the show has today. Where appropriate, updates have been
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added, but the core structure remains faithful to the originals. Because of this, these episodes may
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sound a little different to our recent work. Today's re-release is the North Hollywood Shootout, originally aired as
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Case 18 on May 8th, 2016. I still remember sitting on the floor of my childhood lounge room glued to the TV
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as footage of this shootout played on the evening news. Even in the days before the 24-hour news
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cycle, social media, and the kind of instant global coverage we see today, it was major news here on the other side of
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the world, and those images are still burned into my mind nearly 30 years later.
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Now, here is Case 18 from Casefile Archives, the North Hollywood Shootout. Our episodes deal with serious and often
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distressing incidents. If you feel at any time you need support, please contact your local crisis center. For
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suggested phone numbers for confidential support, and for a more detailed list of
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content warnings, please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website.
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Casefile would like to acknowledge northhollywoodshootout.net, a website dedicated exclusively to this
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case, which offers the most comprehensive and factual account you will find online.
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This episode could not have been created without the use of that resource. If you would like to know more, check
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out northhollywoodshootout.net for images, timelines, original newspaper articles, detailed analyses,
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and much more. February 28th, 1997 was a regular Friday for Los Angeles Police Officers Loren
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Farrell and Martin Perello as they made their way down Laurel Canyon Boulevard in North Hollywood.
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But, as they drove their patrol car past the Bank of America branch at the intersection of Laurel Canyon Boulevard
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and Archwood Street, they noticed something out of the ordinary. Two large figures were entering the
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bank. Both were dressed in black and wearing ski masks. Most alarmingly, both were carrying automatic rifles.
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>> 50 A 14, requesting assistance. We have a possible 211 in progress It's a Bank
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of America. Eagle 1 copy. Located in Laurel Canyon and Kittridge. We have shots fired.
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>> 39 shows responding code three. >> All units, officer needs help at the Bank of America, Laurel Canyon north of
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Kittridge. Officer needs help. Bank of America, Laurel Canyon north of Kittridge.
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>> Before we get to the bank, we go back to 1967. Larry Phillips Senior was just 1 year
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out of high school when he was sent to jail for what some reports claim to be grave desecration.
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He was apparently involved in a drunken prank where he tried to dig up a grave and remove the head of a corpse.
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Larry Senior was paroled in January 1968, but just 3 months later, he was sent back to jail for robbing a gas
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station. He spent 3 months behind bars before being transferred to a state-run psychiatric facility in Colorado.
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The reason for his transfer is unknown, but 10 months later, on April 18, 1969, Larry Senior escaped.
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A warrant was immediately issued for his arrest, but in the meantime, he picked up his girlfriend, Dorothy Clay, who
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reportedly had a criminal record of her own and had also spent time in jail. The couple went on the run using
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numerous aliases to successfully avoid detection for the next few years. Very little is known about what happened
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to them during this time, but at some point, Larry Phillips Senior and Dorothy Clay made their way to California.
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And it was at the California Hospital in Los Angeles on September 20, 1970, that
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Larry Phillips Jr. was born. However, it would be many years until he would be known by this name.
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Given that his parents were still on the run, they used fake names and addresses
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when registering Larry Jr.'s birth, listing him on his birth certificate as Larry Eugene Warfel. Warfel.
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By September 22, 1976, Dorothy and Larry Jr. were living in a small town near Denver, Colorado.
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Although Larry Sr. was no longer living with them, he came over to celebrate Larry Jr.'s sixth birthday.
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Shortly after he arrived, seven FBI agents stormed through the house and placed him under arrest.
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It's unknown who tipped them off, but he was sent back to jail to serve the rest
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of his sentence for the gas station robbery after 7 years on the run. No doubt, that was an experience Larry
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Jr. would not forget. In the years that followed, Larry Phillips Sr. and Dorothy Clay divorced.
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But during his sporadic visits with his son, Larry Sr. passed on his anti-police
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and anti-establishment views. By 1986, Dorothy decided to move to Los Angeles. 16-year-old Larry Jr. went with her,
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having already quit high school in the ninth grade. He had developed a love of bodybuilding,
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and as soon as he got to California, he bought a 5-year membership to the world-famous Gold's Gym at Venice Beach.
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Like so many before him, Larry Jr. had plans to make it big. He wanted to be the next Donald
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Schwarzenegger. Gold's Gym was a 2-hour trip from where Larry Jr. was living, but he remained
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committed. It was only after a few years that he realized he wasn't going to make it as a
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professional bodybuilder, and he let his gym membership expire. Looking for other avenues to find his
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fortune, in 1990, Larry Jr. looked to cash in on Los Angeles' booming property market.
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To receive his real estate license, he had to undergo a background check. He provided a fingerprint, which
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revealed his first and only arrest in 1989 for shoplifting $400 worth of clothes.
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With his bodybuilding dream shattered and his chance at real estate success taken away due to his criminal record,
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Larry Jr. became down and out. Instead of taking responsibility for his own actions, he blamed everybody else
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and started to resent society and its rules. Larry Jr. moved back to Denver with his
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high school sweetheart turned wife, Sharon, and their two children. Determined to strike it rich, Larry came
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up with a new plan. In 1992, he contacted local real estate agents pretending to be a prospective
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buyer. When the agents took him to inspect a house, he watched as they accessed the
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lockbox which contained the keys to the house, and he memorized the combination.
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Using a fake name, Larry then placed ads in the local paper claiming to have several rental properties available.
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He took prospective tenants to inspect the properties, claiming they had just been sold and that the new owners wanted
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to rent them out as soon as possible. Larry would then accept a down payments for rent and security deposits.
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The scam didn't last long. Larry Phillips Jr. was soon arrested, but released pending a sentencing
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hearing in which he faced a possible 2 years in Denver County Jail whilst also participating in a work release program.
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In the lead-up to the hearing, Larry walked out on Sharon and their two kids, and they never saw him again.
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When the day of his sentencing hearing came on March 26, 1993, Larry was nowhere to be seen.
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A warrant for his arrest was issued immediately, but like his father before him, it appeared that Larry Jr. had gone
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on the run. Back in 1989, while working out at Gold's Gym in Venice Beach, Larry
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Phillips Jr. had made a friend. Born on July 19, 1966, Emil Matasareanu was a Romanian
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immigrant who had moved to the USA at the age of 11. While he was the victim of bullying
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during his years at Pasadena High School, Emil went on to complete a 3-year electronics engineering degree at
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university. He opened his own computer business in 1988, but it failed to get off the
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ground. He got married and had a son, but the marriage didn't last either. Emil and Larry Jr. had bonded over their
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shared interest in bodybuilding. Emil was also passionate about firearms. After Larry fled from his charges in
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Colorado, he returned to Los Angeles and hooked back up with his buddy. Both fresh off their failed endeavors,
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they started discussing ways they could make it rich. Or maybe it would be more accurate to
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say that Larry tried to work out how Emil could help make him rich. Larry had big dreams of living an
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extravagant lifestyle. He sometimes drove to affluent neighborhoods and parked outside of
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houses he liked to picture himself living in. He didn't bring anyone into his inner
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circle unless he thought he could use them to his advantage. He was the type who tried to break
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others down just so he could build them back up and to then control them. Larry was the manipulator, while Emil
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was more the follower. He did whatever Larry wanted. On July 20, 1993, the pair successfully
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committed their first robbery, ambushing an armored car outside a branch of First
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Bank in Littleton, Colorado. The police were unable to identify any suspects, and the pair got away with it.
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3 months later, on October 29, 1993, Larry and Emil were driving through Glendale, California, when they were
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pulled over by Sergeant Ian Grimes. Larry was driving, and Emil was in the front passenger seat.
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When questioned, Larry said he had left his license at home, and he gave a false
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name. Sergeant Grimes then asked whose car it was, to which Emil replied, "It was
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Larry's mother's car." Sergeant Grimes had already done a check, and he knew the car was actually
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an airport rental. He asked Larry to step out of the vehicle and then patted him down,
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finding a Glock pistol with an extended 33-round magazine. A loud thud then came from inside the
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car. It was the sound of Emil dropping his own pistol underneath the passenger seat.
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Sergeant Grimes called for assistance and covered Larry and Emil until backup arrived.
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A subsequent search of the car uncovered a semi-automatic rifle and a Springfield
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pistol belonging to Larry, as well as a semi-automatic rifle and a Colt pistol belonging to Emil.
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Police also found 1,649 rounds of 39-mm ammo, 967 rounds of 9-mm ammo, 357 rounds of .45 ammo,
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six smoke bombs, two improvised explosive devices, one gas mask, two sets of body armor, two police scanners,
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sunglasses, gloves, wigs, ski masks, and a stopwatch. Two spray cans of hair color,
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three different sets of Californian license plates, and $1,620 in cash. The police were convinced they had just
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stopped a bank robbery from happening. And given what was to come, they were quite obviously right.
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Larry Phillips Jr. and Emil Matasareanu were taken to the Glendale Police Station where they were both charged
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with conspiracy to commit robbery and unlawful weapons activity. Larry was also charged with grand theft
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auto, carrying a loaded concealed firearm, and felony perjury, while Emil was charged with carrying a loaded
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firearm in a vehicle. At their preliminary hearing, the grand theft auto and the perjury charges
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against Larry were dropped, but the two men still faced 8 years jail on the remaining charges.
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The problem was neither Larry nor Emil said a word, and the police had no other information to go on.
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Despite the arsenal and disguises they were found with, it was difficult to prove they were going to commit a
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robbery. At their arraignment, Larry and Emil claimed the disguises were for an upcoming Halloween party.
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As for the weapons and ammo, they said they were headed to a shooting range. In exchange for early guilty pleas, the
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district attorney dropped the conspiracy to commit robbery charges and allowed Larry and Emil to plead to much lesser
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offenses. On December 27, 1993, Larry was sentenced to 99 days in jail, while Emil
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was sentenced to 71 days, and both were given 3 years probation. Both men were released immediately due
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to time already served. Larry was still wanted in Denver on the rental property scam, but for unknown
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reasons, Denver authorities didn't pursue him. Without being extradited back to Colorado to face punishment, he was
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essentially a free man. Just under a year and a half after Larry Phillips, Jr. and Emil Matasareanu were
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released, on June 14, 1995, a 52-year-old security guard named Herman Cook was doing his rounds as an
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armored car guard for a cash handling company called Brinks. It was Herman's job to drop off and pick
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up cash for various banks. At around 12:25 p.m., he had just made a drop-off at the Bank of America branch
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on Roscoe Boulevard in the quiet Los Angeles neighborhood of Winnetka. Herman was walking back to the armored
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car with an empty money bag when gunshots suddenly rang out. Larry Phillips, Jr. and Emil Matasareanu
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were firing high-powered rifles from behind a wall in an adjacent parking lot. Herman was shot multiple times.
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He staggered to the front of the car and collapsed. Herman's partner, Felipe Cortez, was in
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the armored car at the time. Emil opened fire on the vehicle while Larry made the approach.
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Felipe managed to take out his own firearm and shoot one of the offenders, but they only staggered, indicating they
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were wearing body armor. Larry reached into the car and grabbed a bag of money. The two men then escaped, making off
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with around $122,000. Felipe was shot in the attack, but survived. Herman wasn't so lucky.
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He died from the gunshot wounds. After that, Larry and Emil decided to change tactics.
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10 and 1/2 months later, at 10:00 a.m. on May 2, 1996, they burst through the doors of the Bank
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of America branch on Woodman Avenue in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Van Nuys.
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Both armed with automatic rifles, they yelled at everyone in the bank to get on the [ __ ] floor.
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Emil then started shooting through the armored teller door. Due to the type of weapon and caliber of
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bullet, the door opened easily. Emil forced the manager to open the vault and then started filling up a
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large bag with cash. Larry remained in the main area of the bank, keeping an eye on the customers
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and other staff members. In just 6 minutes, they managed to get away with $755,000.
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29 days later, at 10:00 a.m. on May 31, 1996, Larry and Emil burst through the doors
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of the Bank of America on Roscoe Boulevard in Winnetka. It was the same branch they had targeted
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almost a year earlier when killing Brink's security guard Herman Cook. Again, the two men yelled at everybody
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to get down. Emil shot his way through the teller door, striking two bank employees with
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ricochets in the process. Emil grabbed the manager, forced her to open the vault, and screamed at her to
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fill up his bag. When he saw how much money was in the vault, he became agitated.
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"Where's the rest of it?" he screamed, before threatening to kill the manager. Emil was expecting a much larger amount.
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He and Larry had done surveillance on the bank and saw what they thought to be a cash delivery from an armored car.
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But, what they had actually seen was a cash pickup. Despite being disappointed in the haul,
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they still managed to escape with over $794,000, though there were several marked bills
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amongst it. The two employees who were struck by ricochets survived. Emil and Larry got lucky that day.
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One of the tellers had managed to hit the silent alarm before diving under the floor, but the police were thin on the
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ground, and it took them much longer than usual to respond to the alarm. Larry and Emil had been in the bank for
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close to 8 minutes. On a typical day, the police would have been able to respond within this time
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frame, and it was likely they would have been caught. The police had no suspects for the
00:20:39
robbery at the time, but they did give the unknown criminals a title, the High Incident Bandits.
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It would be 9 months before they struck again. Branch 384 of the Bank of America is
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located at 6600 Laurel Canyon Boulevard in North Hollywood. Larry and Emil had studied the bank
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closely. They learned its layout, observed Ammco drop-offs and pickups, and carefully
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formulated a plan. At around 9:15 on the morning of Friday, February 28th, 1997,
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Emil drove a white 1987 Chevrolet Celebrity sedan with blackened out windows into the northern parking lot of
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the bank via Archwood Street. The pair weren't mucking around. To protect himself, Larry wore Kevlar
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body armor vest, a groin protector, and makeshift armor for his shins, thighs, and forearms that he'd crafted out of
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additional vests. All up, the body armor weighed around 43 lb or 20 kg. Larry also wore a load-bearing vest that
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contained ammunition pouches, as well as a belt that contained several canteen pouches filled with ammunition drums for
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the automatic rifles. He also carried a pistol in a shoulder holster. Over his armor, Larry was dressed in
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long black pants, a long-sleeved shirt, and black jacket. He wore black gloves with a watch face
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glued to the back of the left one. Emil was similarly dressed, right down to the glued-on watch face on the back
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of his glove. However, he wasn't wearing quite as much body armor as Larry, with his legs and
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arms unprotected. Given their shared interest in bodybuilding, both men were largely
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built. As if they didn't already look intimidating enough, they topped things off by wearing black ski masks.
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Between the pair, they had three AK-47 style fully automatic assault rifles with 100-round ammo drums, as well as
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two other assault rifles which had been illegally modified to fire fully automatic.
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Two 9 mm handguns, a .38 caliber revolver, close to 3,000 rounds of ammo, including armor-piercing rounds.
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These were weapons that were designed for war. By listening to police radios, Larry and
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Emil had learned that the average response time for police was 8 minutes. At 9:17 a.m., they set their watches for
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8 minutes and made their move. The northern doorway to the bank was about 32 ft from where the men had
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parked. They each grabbed an AK-47 and a handgun, leaving the other assault rifles in the Chevrolet along with a
00:23:50
police radio, and ran for the door. At that very moment, a Los Angeles Police Department patrol vehicle
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occupied by officers Lauren Farrell and Martin Perello was driving down Laurel Canyon Boulevard on a routine patrol.
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By pure luck, the officers were in the right place at the right time, or the wrong place at the wrong time, depending
00:24:14
on which way you look at it. After seeing Larry and Emil, the officers swung the police car into the
00:24:21
southern parking lot of the Bank of America and took up positions behind their patrol car.
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Officer Farrell then made the first broadcast. >> Security 40, requesting assistance. We
00:24:33
have a possible 211 in progress at the Bank of America. >> Bank of America? >> Laurel Canyon and Laurel Canyon and
00:24:40
Kittridge, we have shots fired. >> 39 show responding code 3. >> All units, officer needs help at the
00:24:49
Bank of America, Laurel Canyon north of Kittridge. Officer needs help, Bank of America, Laurel Canyon north of
00:24:53
Kittridge. >> At the northern entrance of the bank was a foyer containing three ATMs.
00:25:00
A customer was using one of the ATMs when he felt somebody approach him from behind.
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Turning around, he got quite the shock when he saw Larry and Emil. Larry ordered,
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"Okay, [ __ ] Let's go." Not about to argue, the customer did as he was told and walked into the bank
00:25:21
with the two men. Upon their entrance, Emil started firing his into the roof yelling,
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"Everyone down. This is a [ __ ] hold up." Larry declared. "Everyone down, motherfuckers."
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There were about 30 customers in the bank at the time, including five of whom were in the safety deposit box room.
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Everybody complied, although one of the tellers was able to hit the hold up alarm before diving to the floor.
00:25:52
>> Cashiers, open the vault. Open the >> Oh. >> Two people are leaving the bank. Do not
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approach the bank. >> The suspects are inside of the bank. It's a 211 in progress inside of the
00:26:03
Bank of America, located lower Kitchen Road. Lower Kitchen Road, north of Kittridge. Suspects are inside of the
00:26:08
bank. >> Like in the previous bank robberies, Emil approached the teller door and shot
00:26:15
his way through it. The door was bullet resistant and designed to stop any pistol round, but
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it was no match for Emil's high-powered automatic assault rifle. Once he got through the door, Emil
00:26:27
yelled, "Get the money or we will kill you." Joe Villa Grana, the branch's assistant
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manager, got up and made himself known. Emil aimed the rifle at him and told him
00:26:40
to open the vault. As they made their way there, Emil struck Joe in the back of the head with
00:26:46
the rifle. When they passed the safety deposit box room, Emil shot more rounds into the
00:26:53
roof and screamed at the people inside to get out. Larry remained in the lobby keeping
00:26:59
control of the customers and other employees. Meanwhile, Officer Farrell kept the
00:27:06
radio transmissions coming telling the other police where he wanted everyone set up.
00:27:12
>> 831, what do you want on the north side? I want a unit on the south side and I
00:27:16
want to shoot it on the back if possible. >> 1539 is advising car 3 to Laurel Canyon.
00:27:22
Future 1583, what's the unit on the north side, on the south side and on the rear?
00:27:27
>> 831, I want the position on the south side. 831, the front door. We don't think the suspects are going to go out
00:27:32
here. He's in the lobby. >> 1540, you're requesting a unit to safely position themselves in front of the
00:27:39
front door. Suspects possibly do not know the PD is there. >> The next officers to arrive on scene
00:27:47
were detectives Tracy Angeles and William Cruellak. At 9:19 a.m., they pulled into a parking
00:27:55
lot opposite the bank's entrance on the western side. Sergeant Larry Haynes was next on scene.
00:28:02
He blocked off the intersection of Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Archwood Street, which was north of the bank.
00:28:08
This gave him a view of the door that Larry and Emil had entered through. To the best of their knowledge, the
00:28:15
offenders had no idea they were outside at this time. There were a few civilian witnesses
00:28:22
hanging outside the bank and they each approached Sergeant Haynes to report what they'd witnessed.
00:28:29
>> 840, be advised that two witnesses are over there saying there's possibly two
00:28:32
or three suspects inside, possibly AK-47s and wearing ski masks and dark clothing.
00:28:37
>> 1540, advises there's two correction, witnesses at the location basis two to three suspects inside the bank wearing
00:28:43
ski masks and AK-47s. >> Less than 30 seconds later, seemingly now realizing that the police were
00:28:50
there, Larry exited the bank through the northern lobby. Sergeant Haynes released another
00:28:57
broadcast. >> Advisors, I think somebody just came out of the front door of the Bank of
00:29:01
America. >> Advisors, I know an armed person has exited the bank. >> Outside, Larry casually looked around
00:29:11
and surveyed the scene. He didn't look concerned at all. From his position, it's likely he would
00:29:18
have only been able to see Sergeant Haynes' patrol car, so it might not have looked that bad.
00:29:25
After having a look around, Larry turned around and calmly walked back inside the
00:29:30
bank. Shortly after this, Officer Martin Whitfield arrived and parked next to Sergeant Haynes.
00:29:38
Meanwhile, Emil had gained entry to the vault, but progress was slow due to the cash
00:29:45
being stored in several separate locked boxes. This was specifically designed to slow
00:29:51
down bank robberies, and it was working. Emil forced the assistant manager, Joe Villa Grana, to open the boxes and fill
00:30:00
his bag with the cash. In the lobby, Larry walked over to a security guard who was lying face down
00:30:07
on the floor. Larry put his foot on the guard's neck, pointed his rifle at him, and said,
00:30:15
"If you move, [ __ ] I will kill you. When I tell you, I want you to move all of these people to the vault."
00:30:23
The security guard nodded. Larry then walked off, shooting his rifle into the roof while screaming,
00:30:30
"Nobody look at me, or I will kill you." Back inside the vault, Emil was becoming
00:30:37
furious. There was nowhere near the amount of money he'd anticipated. Unbeknownst to him, due to the large
00:30:46
number of recent robberies, including the two at Van Nuys and Winnetka that Larry and Emil had committed, the Bank
00:30:53
of America had changed its delivery schedule. Much to Emil's outrage, the North Hollywood branch still hadn't received
00:31:02
their cash delivery that morning. Emil started firing his weapon in frustration.
00:31:09
Due to the large amount of gunfire being let off and the fact there were hostages
00:31:14
inside the bank, specialist police were needed. The call was put in for SWAT to attend.
00:31:22
>> Multiple shots are being fired from inside the bank. >> Picking up 40 more shots are being fired
00:31:27
from the suspects at Laurel Canyon north of Kittridge at the Bank of America. >> The TRP requesting SWAT to respond to
00:31:33
this location. Requesting immediate for SWAT. >> By this point, police had the bank
00:31:39
surrounded. Officers Haynes and Whitfield were still at the intersection of Laurel Canyon
00:31:45
Boulevard and Archwood Street, giving them a good view of the northern doorway. Officer Brentlinger was east of their
00:31:52
position, covering the northeastern side of the bank. First officers on the scene, Farrell and
00:31:58
Perello, were still in position in the southern parking lot. Detectives Krulac and Angeles had been
00:32:05
joined by officers Borovan and Officer Guy in the parking lot opposite the bank on the western side.
00:32:12
And there were still plenty more police officers on the way. Back inside the vault, Joe had placed
00:32:20
$303,305 inside Emil's bag. But amongst all that cash were three dye packs. Emil walked out of the vault towards the
00:32:33
teller door. Larry yelled at a bank employee to open the door. Open the [ __ ] door.
00:32:42
She complied. Larry then yelled at the security guard demanding, "Move these people to the vault now."
00:32:52
The customers and employees made their way inside the vault. The time was 9:24 a.m. Larry Phillips
00:33:02
Jr. and Emil Matasareanu had been inside the bank for over 7 minutes. Larry burst through the northern door of
00:33:10
the bank looking straight up towards the intersection of Archwood Street and Laurel Canyon Boulevard where Haynes and
00:33:16
Whitfield were positioned. Without a second of hesitation, Larry opened fire. First, he aimed for Officer Haynes'
00:33:25
patrol car. Three civilian witnesses were still there and immediately dove for cover.
00:33:33
Officer Whitfield was behind his patrol car next to Haynes. Larry took aim and unleashed on him as
00:33:40
well. The bullets ripped through the car with ease, wounding Whitfield in the process.
00:33:47
>> It's now 10-50, what is going on there? >> 10-50, we're taking automatic fire. The
00:33:51
party in the area with fire. >> 50-50, this is a party. >> Shots fired. Fully automatic weapons fire.
00:33:58
>> 10-50, this is a party. It's now 10-50 requesting help. 50-50, location? >> I'm at the bank.
00:34:05
>> I need it by 9:09 advising shots fired 500 block of Laurel Canyon. 10-50 requesting help by units officers
00:34:13
requesting help Laurel Canyon and the Partridge at the Bank of America. Shots are being fired. All units officers
00:34:18
requesting help at the bank. >> Stay down. >> He's got an AK-47. >> Bank of America, stay down. Shots are
00:34:28
being fired. Automatic fire. Fire >> is being notified. Call 3, all officers stay down. Shots are being fired from
00:34:34
AK-47. There is an officer down. >> Shots fired. Officer down in front of the fire.
00:34:42
>> All units officer Liu Tuan came in and keep yourself down. Officer Liu Tuan came in and keep yourself down.
00:34:48
>> As Larry was firing north, he effectively had his back turned to other officers who were positioned to the
00:34:54
southwest, taking cover behind a locksmith's kiosk. Officer Zaboyan was among them and he
00:35:02
saw an opportunity. Zaboyan stepped out and fired two shots from his pump action shotgun.
00:35:10
Some of the pellets struck Larry in the back. One even found a gap in his body armor
00:35:16
and struck him directly. The hit caused Larry to stumble, but he didn't fall. He turned around to face Zaboyan who had
00:35:26
resumed his position behind the cover of the locksmith kiosk. Larry opened fire on the kiosk, shooting
00:35:34
over 100 rounds into the building. The cover was flimsy and bullets penetrated the walls easily and
00:35:41
ricocheted all over the place. The officers hit the ground. Officers Zaboyan and Guy had body armor
00:35:49
on, but detectives Krulac and Angeles did not. Realizing this, Zaboyan placed his body
00:35:56
over the top of detective Angeles. A few seconds later, he was struck twice and started bleeding heavily.
00:36:05
>> We need help out here with the officers downstairs. We got an officer down in front of the
00:36:09
fire. >> Any unit know how many officers are down? We have one. >> More than one. More than one.
00:36:15
>> There's more than one officer down. SWAT is being notified. >> Officer down in front of the fire.
00:36:19
>> 5K90 roger. >> Go for it. 25 10 30 roger. Officer down. >> It's 5K90 5C has been
00:36:27
declared deceased. >> Officer down. >> After unloading on the locksmith kiosk, Larry turned back to the north towards
00:36:40
officers Whitfield and Haynes and the three civilian witnesses. Haynes was broadcasting
00:36:49
when Larry opened fire again, striking Haynes in the upper left arm. The patrol car was being quickly
00:36:58
destroyed by bullets and offering minimal Civilian Tracy Fisher could see her cover
00:37:04
dwindling Panicking, she decided to run, but as she tried to get away, she was shot in the
00:37:13
Tracy dropped back down behind the patrol car. Another civilian, Michael Horan, had also been
00:37:20
struck. Together with officer Haynes, this left three wounded people behind the patrol
00:37:26
car. Back behind the locksmith kiosk, Detective Krulac asked officer Zaboravan if he was able to Despite
00:37:38
being shot, Zaboravan said he could. The two tried to get to safety using vehicles in the parking lot as cover,
00:37:46
but Larry spotted them and unleashed more bullets. Both men were hit with glass and other
00:37:52
fragments as Larry's bullets damaged the surrounding cars. Detective Krulac was also shot in the
00:37:59
right ankle. The pair spotted a dentist surgery nearby and made a run for it while Larry
00:38:06
continued peppering them with bullets. When they got to the dentist's door, they didn't have time to stop and open
00:38:13
it. Instead, they just dove Using the cars in the parking lot as cover, Detective Angelos and as well.
00:38:25
Larry turned his attention to them and sprayed them with bullets. By this point, Larry had been firing at
00:38:32
the police for around 3 minutes. During that time, he had fired approximately 300 rounds and wounded
00:38:40
several officers and civilians. At 9:27 a.m., Larry walked back inside the bank.
00:38:50
The police struggled to explain the onslaught. One officer put it best when he said,
00:38:57
"I was in the wrong place with the wrong gun." The bullets the police were using were
00:39:03
incapable of penetrating Larry's body armor, and given that most of his body was protected, the police basically had
00:39:11
no chance. Larry, on the other hand, had an automatic assault rifle with armor-piercing rounds that were going
00:39:18
through cars and walls with ease. It wasn't a fair fight. From inside the dentist office, Officer
00:39:28
Zuborovan called out for help. The dentist on site, Dr. Jorge Montes, tended to him right away, but he really
00:39:37
needed a hospital. Outside, more and more officers arrived at the scene and took positions around
00:39:44
the perimeter. At 9:30 a.m., Larry walked back outside. This time, Emil was with him.
00:39:54
They both carried the bag of money through the door and stood in the entranceway, which gave them a level of
00:40:00
protection. They then opened fire, aiming towards the position where Officer Guy and
00:40:07
Detective Evangelous were taking cover. Upstairs in the dentist office, Zuborovan was looking out and could see
00:40:15
what was going on. He yelled into the police radio. Zaboravan was trying to direct his
00:40:27
colleague to safety, but Officer Guy was pinned down by the heavy fire. The bullets ripped through the car he
00:40:35
was taking cover behind, and he was struck in the right thigh. Officer Guy took his gun belt off and
00:40:41
used it as a tourniquet, which would ultimately save his life. Detective Angeles was also wounded.
00:40:51
The police were basically helpless at this point. Most of the original responders had been
00:40:56
wounded, and the SWAT team still hadn't arrived. They had actually been on a training
00:41:02
exercise at the police academy when the call came through. Larry and Emil continued to fire at
00:41:08
anything that moved. Despite being completely surrounded, they calmly left the entrance of the
00:41:14
bank and walked out into the open. Wounded officers Haynes and Whitfield were still behind their patrol cars with
00:41:22
the three civilians when they realized that Larry and Emil were moving towards them.
00:41:29
The officers made a decision to try and protect the civilians by drawing the fire away from them.
00:41:35
Officers Haynes and Whitfield got up and ran so that the shooters would target them instead.
00:41:42
Haynes managed to reach a nearby tree line and took cover, but he was wounded again, this time in the left shin.
00:41:50
Whitfield also tried to take cover behind a nearby tree, but not before being shot through the thigh.
00:41:57
The bullet shattered his femur, putting him in really bad shape, but he managed to crawl his way behind the tree.
00:42:05
Not satisfied with badly wounding him, Larry and Emil continued to fire. Officers were going down everywhere.
00:42:21
>> I need an air unit. Please help. In front of the building before the parking lot.
00:42:26
>> I think you requested help in the building parking parking lot. There's possibly also also a motor officer down
00:42:31
at Victory and Archwood. I need a check of the >> over night. >> Return and get back.
00:42:43
>> You know that just requested help. What is your location? The builder's parking
00:42:45
lot? >> I'm going in. I'm going in. South of Hughes in the parking lot and in the building.
00:42:51
Multiple officers hit. >> Multiple officers hit in the building south of south of Hughes market. Multiple
00:42:58
officers hit. They're sending in a tank for the officers. >> He's a people like I saw on the
00:43:05
north side of the bank. >> On the north side of the bank. I need to just a citywide tac alert. We
00:43:11
are now on tac alert due to the unusual occurrence in North Hollywood division. A citywide tac alert at this time until
00:43:17
further notice. >> Media helicopters had started to arrive and were capturing the first pictures of
00:43:23
this madness that would soon be broadcast around the world. A police helicopter also circled above
00:43:30
giving updates on what they could see from the air. Larry carried the bag of money to their
00:43:36
Chevrolet while Emil covered him by continuing to shoot. By this point, the dye packs had
00:43:42
exploded inside the bag but a lot of the money remained untainted. Larry dropped the bag next to the car
00:43:50
and grabbed some more ammunition with Emil close behind. >> They're going to north. They're going to
00:43:56
the front out north. >> The suspects are exiting through the north front. >> They have suspects on the north side of
00:44:03
the building. They're walking around like nothing. They got AK-47s doing this all night. Heavy body armor.
00:44:11
>> Heavy body >> The suspects are actively in the bank on the north side of the building, armed
00:44:14
with AK-47s, wearing heavy body armor. >> Yes, uh air unit, these guys are firing at the officers.
00:44:25
Tell officers to stand back. These guys are firing at officers. >> All officers, get back per the air unit.
00:44:28
The suspects are firing at all officers. Stay down per the air unit. >> As Emil made his way to the car, a
00:44:36
bullet grazed him above the right eye. The wound was only a few millimeters away from killing him.
00:44:43
Emil dropped to one knee behind the Chevrolet while he assessed the damage. He also had a gunshot wound to the calf.
00:44:52
Once he realized he was okay, Emil jumped into their vehicle. Larry didn't seem too interested in
00:45:00
getting in. He was still shooting at anything and everything. Many more officers had arrived on the
00:45:07
scene, and they were shooting at the offenders from multiple positions. Larry was shot at least three times in
00:45:14
this exchange, but the body armor continued to protect him. >> All officers, these guys are still ready
00:45:21
to get in. One suspect is in the white vehicle. >> One suspect has entered a white vehicle.
00:45:27
>> Um the white vehicle, that's the west The white vehicle is on the west side of
00:45:32
the bank. One suspect >> Tell all officers to find out the officers to the rear location.
00:45:40
>> All officers, stay down. One suspect is still firing at officers in the rear of
00:45:43
the bank. One suspect has entered a white vehicle on the west side of the bank. >> While waiting for the SWAT team to
00:45:49
arrive, the North Hollywood Watch Commander put a call out for any available officers to go to a B&B gun
00:45:56
store and get some bigger guns that would have the ability to get through Larry and Emil's body armor.
00:46:02
>> There's nothing we have that can stop them. Do any units that are available to go to
00:46:07
B A D and pick up some weapons? >> They're requesting someone to go to B B A D and pick up wep- weapons.
00:46:16
>> 50 L 10, do you have any body available to go to B A D guns? >> Hang on. SWAT unit come in.
00:46:20
>> 50 L 41, we're going to B A D guns. Special 82's going. >> Picking crash 41 is going to get guns.
00:46:27
>> A detective unit and a crash unit responded to the call. The store was closed when they arrived,
00:46:34
but they managed to get staff to open up. The shop owner instructed his staff to
00:46:40
give the LAPD whatever they wanted. As police reinforcements continued, Larry was taking more and more fire.
00:46:50
He made his way back to the Chevrolet and swapped weapons. >> Suspect is retrieving additional weapons
00:46:57
from the trunk of his vehicle. >> The suspect is retrieving additional weapons from the vehicle and shots are
00:47:03
being fired. >> Suspect is walking out the east side of the bank to try to get people to come
00:47:07
after him. He's got additional weapons. The trunk is open on his vehicle. >> Why Larry didn't get into the car to
00:47:13
start the getaway at this point, nobody knows. Instead, he took a knee in front of the
00:47:20
Chevrolet, aimed upward, and started firing at the media helicopters. Larry was shot again, but the body armor
00:47:28
was still holding up. He continued firing non-stop. Emil opened the passenger door,
00:47:36
beckoning for Larry to get in, but Larry slammed the door shut. He was intent to stay outside the
00:47:43
vehicle and provide covering fire. >> 50 L 10, if somebody has a shot, take it. Suspect is down.
00:47:52
>> One suspect is walking east of the bank. 50 L 10 advises someone has a shot, take
00:47:56
it. >> Suspect is down. Shots fired. He's going down. He's got heavy body armor.
00:48:01
>> Go for the head. >> This subject has heavy body armor. Officers are firing at him and he's not
00:48:06
going down. >> Despite taking multiple hits, Larry wasn't going down. The body armor was too effective.
00:48:15
That left only one place for the police to aim. The call was put out to aim for the
00:48:21
head. Officer Whitfield had been keeping radio contact, but it was starting to get
00:48:27
touch and go. >> We have an officer down Victory west of Laurel Canyon. He needs help code three.
00:48:34
He is passing out. West of the 170 way at Victory. The officer needs help immediately.
00:48:45
>> Two officers who took action in response to the officer down calls were Anthony
00:48:50
Cabunoc and Todd Schmitz. While responding to Officer Whitfield's call, they instead came across Detective
00:48:57
Angelus and Officer Guy, both wounded and still taking cover in the parking lot opposite the bank.
00:49:04
Officer Cabunoc grabbed Officer Guy and pulled him into their car, while Detective Angelus was able to get in
00:49:10
herself. Officer Schmitz then reversed harshly out of the parking lot to get medical
00:49:17
help. The SWAT team had arrived by this point and immediately got to work rescuing the
00:49:23
other injured officers and civilians. They got hold of an armored car to assist in the rescue.
00:49:31
>> You know, 120, advise units on the perimeter that where the officer is rescued, uh, fire department has set up
00:49:36
command post at the fire station 89 and bringing in a helicopter to take him out.
00:49:40
>> Bring the officer when he's rescued to fire station fire station 89. They have
00:49:44
units standing by. >> You know, the officer has been rescued just uh further down of Archwood and
00:49:50
Laurel Canyon. He appears to be unconscious. He is down on the west side of the street.
00:49:56
>> Officer is down at Laurel Canyon Archwood. He's unconscious. Shots are being fired still. The officer
00:50:06
is down at Archwood and Laurel Canyon. >> 40 is about 30 yards north of Archwood
00:50:12
on Laurel Canyon. He's behind me about >> 30 yards north of Archwood on Laurel Canyon. The officer is down unconscious.
00:50:20
>> 40, that officer is behind the tree now. He's got cover. >> The officer that's down has gotten cover
00:50:25
behind the tree. The RA is being notified. We're trying to get someone in for him.
00:50:30
Get the officer >> Armor car coming in with a little present. Stand by. Everybody stand by.
00:50:35
>> Everyone stand by. There is an armor car coming in for the police officers. >> The suspect vehicle is moving. The
00:50:40
suspect vehicle is moving. >> Emil put the Chevrolet in motion, deciding it was time to attempt to
00:50:46
leave. >> The suspect vehicle is moving. The suspect vehicle is moving. >> Suspect vehicle is moving.
00:50:53
>> Slowly, Emil drove out of the parking lot with Larry walking alongside the vehicle and firing nonstop.
00:51:01
Emil turned right onto Archwood Street and headed east, while Larry was hit twice more.
00:51:08
He sought refuge behind a large truck with a long trailer that was parked on the side of the road.
00:51:14
Emil completely lost sight of Larry and continued driving east. >> We've got one suspect driving the white
00:51:22
vehicle. He's down from the north parking lot. We've got one suspect on foot. The suspect on foot is behind a
00:51:28
long trailer truck trailer rig. 50 out here. Advise units 11-41 and moving at a high speed.
00:51:35
>> Squad is moving in. There's one suspect eastbound from the north side of the parking lot in a vehicle. The other one
00:51:40
is on foot near the long trailer. Squad is en route to 6600 Laurel Canyon across
00:51:44
from Dale Taco for the officer down. >> They're moving eastbound. They're moving
00:51:47
eastbound down Archwood. The suspect is moving eastbound near Archwood. >> Officer Torres had a clear shot of the
00:51:55
Chevrolet and fired 12 bullets into it, prompting Emil to drive off, leaving Larry behind.
00:52:03
One of Larry's gunshot wounds was bad enough that it would turn fatal if he didn't get help soon.
00:52:10
To add to his problems, Larry's rifle had also jammed. He pulled out his Beretta pistol and
00:52:17
started walking east. >> Suspect walking. Walking at uh He's at 103 East of Laurel Canyon.
00:52:26
>> The suspect is walking towards 103 East of Laurel Canyon from Archwood. >> Way up ahead, Larry could see Emil in
00:52:32
the Chevrolet, but Emil wasn't waiting. He had his own problems being pursued by
00:52:38
other officers. At least seven officers stood in the path between Larry and the Chevrolet.
00:52:46
He continued firing at the police with his Beretta, but he was shot yet again. By this point, he had suffered 11
00:52:54
gunshot wounds. The latest one struck him in the hand, causing him to drop the pistol.
00:53:01
He picked it up off the ground, put it under his chin, and shot himself in the head.
00:53:08
He died instantly. Larry Phillips Jr. was 26 years old. Meanwhile, up the road, Emil was still
00:53:23
under fire himself, being closely followed by police on the ground and helicopters in the air.
00:53:30
The Chevrolet was leaking fuel and its tires were flat. Realizing it wouldn't be drivable for
00:53:36
much longer, Emil needed to swap cars. He was still driving east on Archwood Street when a red Ford sedan drove
00:53:45
towards him. Seeing the shot-up vehicle with Emil behind the wheel, the red Ford started
00:53:51
to reverse. Emil got out of his car and motioned for the red Ford to come back. It didn't, so Emil started firing at it.
00:54:03
>> The driver of the suspect in the white vehicle is at Lamp. He's out of the vehicle. He's shooting at civilians.
00:54:08
>> The suspect is out of the vehicle at Lamp shooting at civilians. >> All of this was being caught on camera.
00:54:15
Times were getting desperate for Emil, and a getaway was looking close to impossible.
00:54:21
He got back into the Chevrolet and just sat there doing nothing. He did nothing for over 10 seconds
00:54:29
before putting the Chevrolet into drive and continuing east along Archwood Street.
00:54:35
>> All the suspect is back in the white vehicle. He is now moving slowly east down between Lamp and Back.
00:54:41
>> Emil then found another target, a 1962 Jeep Gladiator being driven by a man named Bill Marr.
00:54:50
Emil started firing through the windscreen of his vehicle into Bill's Jeep. This was enough for Bill to stop the
00:54:57
Jeep and get out and run. Emil pulled up next to the Jeep. He got out of the Chevrolet, dumped all of his
00:55:05
weapons and ammo into the Jeep, and then jumped behind the wheel and attempted to
00:55:10
drive off. But, he couldn't get it started. >> There's >> The suspect in the white vehicle just
00:55:16
took a citizen's vehicle. It looks like a brown truck. He's starting to proceed on the westbound on Archwood.
00:55:23
>> The suspect took a citizen's vehicle in the brown truck westbound on >> Archwood westbound
00:55:29
>> A police car containing three SWAT officers, Don Anderson, Steve Gomez, and Richard Massa, sped east down Archwood
00:55:38
Street. Emil sat in the Jeep facing west, meaning the officers were approaching head-on.
00:55:46
Officer Anderson was driving. In an incredibly brave move, he drove straight at Emil, pulling the car up at
00:55:53
an angle directly in front of the Jeep. When Emil saw the SWAT team pull up, he jumped out of the Jeep and took cover
00:56:01
behind the Chevrolet. This put a distance of about 30 ft and three cars between him and the SWAT
00:56:08
officers. A fierce gun battle ensued. >> One down Archwood. >> Go south of Imperial Highway.
00:56:16
>> More shots are being fired. Shots are being fired. Shots being fired behind the white car.
00:56:22
>> Watch crossfire. >> All units, watch for crossfire. >> On Archwood between Rafferty and Hind,
00:56:28
Metro's engaging the suspect. All units, stay back. >> On Archwood between Rafferty and Hind,
00:56:33
air unit advise all officers to stay back. Watch for crossfire. >> Emil was struck several times, but his
00:56:40
body armor saved him yet again. The SWAT team quickly realized that if they fired underneath the vehicles, they
00:56:47
would be able to hit Emil in the legs, which weren't protected by armor. Their plan worked.
00:56:54
Emil was shot multiple times in the legs, with one bullet actually shattering his leg.
00:57:00
Still, he refused to give up and continued firing. But it was clear that SWAT were winning
00:57:07
the battle. Emil was hit several more times, and eventually, he collapsed to the ground,
00:57:15
dropping his weapon in the process. The SWAT team pounced on him. The entire exchange had lasted just
00:57:23
under 2 minutes. >> One suspect on Archwood. >> One suspect in custody. One suspect in
00:57:34
custody. Suspect on I-5 is in custody. >> The time was 10:01 a.m. The North Hollywood shootout was over.
00:57:51
But the scene was obviously still chaotic. Injured officers and civilians were everywhere. And the LAPD still wasn't
00:57:59
entirely sure if all the gunmen had been caught or if there were others still on
00:58:04
the loose. They started checking the scene and the surrounding area for more shooters. A
00:58:10
job that would ultimately take them 12 hours to officially clear. All up, Emil had been shot 29 times, but
00:58:20
he was still breathing. Two detectives stood guard over him while other police cleared the area.
00:58:27
But after 65 minutes, with an ambulance unable to get to him in time, Emil Matasareanu died at the scene.
00:58:35
He was 30 years old. Later that same year, Emil's family filed a civil suit against the LAPD and
00:58:44
specifically the two detectives who guarded him as he lay dying. The court case alleged that paramedics
00:58:52
had been making their way to attend to Emil, but had been turned away by police.
00:58:57
It also alleged that an officer had canceled the call for more paramedics and that ultimately the police had
00:59:04
deliberately let Emil die. In their defense, the LAPD explained that it was standard procedure not to
00:59:13
allow any paramedics into what they called a hot zone as it put their lives in danger.
00:59:19
Given that they believed there were more active shooters in the area at the time,
00:59:24
the LAPD said they couldn't allow paramedics to attend to Emil for their own safety.
00:59:30
The jury couldn't reach a verdict and the case resulted in a hung jury. After that, Emil's family ended up at
00:59:38
dropping the civil suit. During the North Hollywood shootout, over 300 police officers had responded
00:59:47
to the citywide tactical alert and 32 officers had fired their weapons. All up, Larry and Emil had fired about
00:59:56
1,100 rounds between them while the police had fired around 650. 17 officers were awarded the Medal of
01:00:06
Honor for their actions and bravery. A total of 11 police and seven civilians were injured during the shootout. But by
01:00:15
some miracle, they all survived. The only people who lost their lives were Larry Phillips Jr.
01:00:23
and Emil Matasareanu. >> Tell 40B my D units we have your unusable the black and white they're all
01:00:30
blown up. All the black and whites at the location are unusable. They're have shots fired.