Victims of spectacular German bank heist file lawsuits
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Masked thieves in December drilled their way into a vault inside a branch of Sparkasse bank in the western city of Gelsenkirchen, making off with millions.
PHOTO: REUTERS
FRANKFURT – The first lawsuits were filed on Jan 28 by victims of a German bank heist in December
The lawyer, Mr Daniel Kuhlmann, said three cases were lodged in a court in Essen, Germany, holding the bank liable for damages for what he called lax security.
Masked thieves in December accessed a branch of a savings bank in the western city of Gelsenkirchen through a parking garage, allowing them to bore into a vault with thousands of safety deposit boxes, the police have said.
The episode shocked Germany and made headlines internationally.
The court in Essen said it was unable to comment at this point.
The bank, Sparkasse Gelsenkirchen, also did not immediately respond to a request for comment but has said it was a victim of the crime and that its premises was “secured in accordance with recognised state-of-the-art technology”.
One of the lawsuits filed on Jan 28 related to a retired person who had almost €400,000 (S$604,600) in cash in the vault from the sale of an apartment, Mr Kuhlmann said.
Another victim, the chief executive of a medium-sized company, had stored cash, jewellery and a Rolex watch worth around €120,000 in total, while a third had around €50,000 worth of gold in the vault, the lawyer said.
The bank has said the contents of security boxes are generally insured for €10,300 each.
Mr Mark Branson, president of Germany’s BaFin banking regulator, said on Jan 28 the theft was “spectacular” and “attracted a lot of attention, including the question of what is insured and what customers need to know about insurance coverage”. REUTERS
