CAMPBELL — Masked men robbed a U.S. Bank at gunpoint Wednesday and staged a getaway where they fled in a truck that they quickly ditched to split up into two waiting cars, police said.

The robbery was reported about 12:45 p.m. at the branch at 1998 S. Bascom Ave. when two men wearing masks entered, brandished handguns and jumped the bank counter, Campbell police Sgt. Joe Cefalu said.

After taking an undisclosed amount of cash, the duo ran out to a waiting full-sized GMC Sierra pickup and drove about a block east to the corner of East Campbell Avenue and South Midway Street, where they abandoned the vehicle, which police learned was reported stolen in Watsonville.

Police launched a neighborhood search with the assistance of a helicopter but called it off after getting tips that the three men — the robbers and the getaway driver — were seen getting into two other vehicles, Cefalu said.

The second set of cars were described as a bluish-green Chevrolet Tahoe SUV and a silver Honda compact last seen southbound on Midway.

Police were given vague descriptions of the gunmen: white or Latino men in their late 20s or early 30s, one standing about 5-foot-9 and the other about 5-foot-6 and heavyset, both wearing masks, the taller one wearing a dark-colored hoodie and the shorter one wearing a tan hoodie.

The initial getaway driver was described as a white or Latino man in his late 20s, heavyset with a towel covering the lower half of his face.

Anyone with information about the robbery can contact Campbell police Sgt. Gary Berg at 408-866-2184 or Detective Lee Heitzman at 408-866-2708.

Contact Robert Salonga at 408-920-5002. Follow him at Twitter.com/robertsalonga.