Bank manager charged with masterminding robbery

An assistant manager at a Los Angeles bank who said she helped robbers because they had strapped a bomb to her has been charged with helping plan the theft. A federal grand jury handed up an indictment Thursday charging Aurora Barrera and Reyes Vega with conspiracy to commit bank robbery and other charges, the Los Angeles Times reported. Prosecutors say Vega is Barrera's ex-boyfriend. Barrera removed more than $560,000 from a safe at the Bank of America branch in East Los Angeles where she worked in September. She said masked men had invaded her home during the night and strapped the bomb on her chest, although the bomb proved to be a dummy when it was removed by a robot. Barrera and Reyes were scheduled for arraignment Friday afternoon. Two other men have also been charged.