‘Ocean’s Eleven’ gang steals $45m in cash, gold from German bank over Christmas
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A police spokesman likened the "very professionally executed” break-in to the heist movie Ocean’s Eleven.
PHOTO: AFP
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- Robbers in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, stole €30 million in cash, gold, and jewellery from a Sparkasse bank vault by drilling in.
- The thieves broke into over 3,000 safe deposit boxes undetected over the weekend, escaping in a stolen black Audi RS 6.
- Distressed customers gathered outside the closed bank demanding answers, while police investigate the "professionally executed" heist.
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BERLIN - Robbers used a large drill to break into a German savings bank’s vault room and steal cash, gold and jewellery worth some €30 million (S$45 million), police said on Dec 30.
The spectacular heist in the western city of Gelsenkirchen, in North Rhine-Westphalia state, saw thieves smash open more than 3,000 safe deposit boxes and make off with the loot.
While the criminals remained at large, hundreds of distressed bank customers massed outside the bank’s branch on Dec 30 demanding information, but were kept at bay by police.
According to police, the robbers drilled their way into the underground vault room of the Sparkasse savings bank from a parking garage.
The bank said the branch was “broken into over the Christmas holidays” and that “more than 95 per cent of the 3,250 customer safe deposit boxes were broken into by unknown perpetrators”.
German businesses were closed for Christmas on Dec 25 and 26, and investigators suspect the gang may have spent the holidays and weekend inside, breaking open the deposit boxes.
The robbery came to light after a fire alarm was triggered in the early hours of Dec 29 and emergency services discovered the hole.
Witnesses reported seeing several men carrying large bags in the stairwell of the parking garage during the night from Dec 27 to Dec 28.
Footage from security cameras show a black Audi RS 6 leaving the parking garage early on the morning of Dec 29, with masked persons inside.
‘Professionally executed’
The car’s licence plate had been stolen earlier in the city of Hanover, police said.
A police spokesman told AFP that the break-in was “indeed very professionally executed”, likening it to the heist movie Ocean’s Eleven.
“A great deal of prior knowledge and/or a great deal of criminal energy must have been involved to plan and carry this out,” he said.
Police said that the more than 3,000 boxes had an average insurance value of €10,000, and therefore estimated the damage at some €30 million.
Hundreds of distressed bank customers massed outside the bank’s branch on Dec 30 demanding information.
PHOTO: AFP
Several victims had told police officers that their losses far exceeded the insured value of their safe deposit boxes.
The police spokesman said “disgruntled customers” were outside the bank’s branch, which did not open for security reasons after threats had been made against employees.
“We’re still on site, keeping an eye on things,” he said, adding that “the situation has calmed down considerably”.
The bank said it had set up a hotline for customers and that all those affected would be informed in writing as soon as possible while it was working with the insurance company to determine how to process the claims.
“We are shocked,” said bank press spokesman Frank Krallmann. “We are standing by our customers and hope that the perpetrators will be caught.” AFP
