BANK HEIST: Three men stole about $750,000...

BANK HEIST: Three men stole about $750,000 from a Newhall bank Wednesday in one of the Southland’s largest bank heists. . . . The robbers forced the bank’s manager to hold a bag allegedly containing explosives, cleaned out the vault and automated teller machines, then ordered employees into the vault (B1).

DIODE DO-RIGHT: Responding to a Times story on California state prison inmates repairing computers for use by schools, Valley businesses decided to pitch in. . . . Local companies have pledged nearly 50 old computers to the Computer for Schools Program since Monday. “I think it’s a great idea,” said Elysa Sacks, operations manager at the A.E. Schmidt Co. of North Hollywood, one of the donors. “We’ve got a whole bunch of old computers down in the storeroom.” Interested donors can call (619) 456-9045.

TEACHER’S PADDLE: Warren Glazer, above, may be one of the only teachers who can get away with using a paddle with his students. . . . Glazer instructs landlocked Valley residents about the sport of kayaking, and leads them on expeditions to the Channel Islands (C8).

SELLING ALAMO: Remember Tony Alamo, the enigmatic leader of a Santa Clarita church who was later imprisoned for tax evasion? Well, now’s your chance to own Alamo memorabilia. . . . Through Saturday, the IRS is auctioning off 12,000 items in Nashville from Alamo’s defunct clothing chain. The fashion is definitely retro: The merchandise includes $5,000 sequined jackets, children’s exotic skin boots and painted denim pants. . . .

RAKING IT IN: . . . Nevertheless, Alamowear is hot. At about 10 cents on the dollar, the auction has netted $128,000 in two days. All the money goes to Uncle Sam to pay off Alamo’s $2-million-plus income tax debt. “A lot of people are thinking these are collector’s items,” said IRS spokesman Dan Boone. “We don’t know if they will ever be made again.”