Saarland
Arrests near Paris after robbery of money transporter
A money transporter is burned out after a robbery on a street. photo
© Becker Bredel/dpa
Injured, shots and an explosion: Suspects were arrested after a money transporter was robbed in Saarland. They are said to belong to organized crime in France.
According to a report in the newspaper “Le Parisien”, five suspects were arrested near Paris after the spectacular attack on a money transporter in Saarlouis, Saarland.
Two of the suspects are said to have been directly involved in the robbery, the newspaper reported, citing legal sources. According to this, they are members of organized crime in France who have already been convicted of similar crimes in the past.
The act on Friday resulted in an exchange of fire and an explosion – the unknown had blown up the van and also stolen cash. The perpetrators are said to have fled in high-horsepower cars towards the French border. The federal police and the French police took part in the large-scale manhunt. A picture of the devastation remained at the crime scene: the burned-out money transporter was parked across the street, several other cars were charred, shell casings lay on the asphalt.
No information on identity and circumstances
The Saarland police spoke of only three arrests. A police spokesman said there was currently no information about other people arrested. It will be checked whether those arrested are related to the crime the day before. The spokesman also did not provide any information on the identity or the circumstances of the arrests. How many police officers were injured in the act the day before also remained open. The officials suffered minor injuries during an escape maneuver by the perpetrators.
“Le Parisien” quoted a source close to the investigation as saying: “These are older bank robbers who have recognized know-how in this area.” Two other arrested are said to belong to the same team. The fifth perpetrator is said to have been on the fringes of the event. The arrests by special police forces were made on Friday evening in Epinay and Saint-Denis near the French capital.
The newspaper “JDD” also reported five arrests. Among them was a 56-year-old who is considered a representative of organized crime in Paris, and one of his loyal accomplices. Both were taken into police custody at the Central Office for Combating Organized Crime (OCLCO). The two alleged accomplices are said to have stayed at the scene of the robbery. The investigators had secured 500,000 euros and firearms from the suspects. In total, the loot is said to have amounted to two million euros.
According to “JDD” information, the 56-year-old was sentenced to 22 years in prison in 2005 for an attack on a money transporter in which one person died in Nanterre near Paris in 2000.
Burnt out getaway vehicle found
As the newspaper “Le Républicain Lorrain” reported, a burnt-out car was found in Boulay, Lorraine, which could be the getaway car of the perpetrators. Boulay is on the Saarlouis-Metz road, not far from the access to the A4 motorway to Paris.
The police assumed that the robbery was meticulously planned. The perpetrators are said to have been waiting for the cash transport on Friday morning at a crossroads in the Lisdorf district of Saarlouis. As the vehicle turned a corner, a small car rammed into the van, causing it to stop. There was an exchange of fire and almost simultaneously there was an explosion at the stern. Both vehicles are said to have caught fire, and other cars nearby were also damaged.