"Thieves had drilled a hole in the wall of the vault of a local Sparkasse savings bank and made off with the contents of almost 3,250 deposit boxes. The robbery, likened by a police spokesperson to the Hollywood film Ocean's Eleven, made international headlines: it is estimated that the thieves' haul could have been worth as much as 300m (260m), a sum that would make it the one of the biggest bank heists in a country wearily familiar with them."
"The Gelsenkirchen Sparkasse was where he kept his savings as well as family heirloom jewellery. He fears his dreams of retiring soon with his wife have now gone up in smoke. I hoped against hope that my deposit box wasn't one of those that had been plundered, the 67-year-old said. But after spending 45 minutes waiting in a queue for his call to a bank hotline to be answered, he was told his box, number 1,413, was among more than 3,000 to have been emptied."
"Police believe the thieves carried out the theft over a four-hour period on 27 December. Having gained access to the bank from an adjoining car park through a manipulated emergency exit, they then set about boring a hole with a 300kg drill into the vault's wall. Police were only alerted 48 hours later after a fire alarm was activated and they arrived to find the break-in."
Thieves drilled into the vault wall of a Sparkasse branch in Gelsenkirchen and emptied almost 3,250 deposit boxes during a four-hour raid on 27 December. The haul could be worth as much as €300m, potentially ranking among Germany's largest bank heists. Investigators say the perpetrators entered from an adjoining car park by manipulating an emergency exit and used a 300kg drill to bore into the vault. Police were alerted 48 hours later after a fire alarm and discovered the break-in. Many customers, including a 67-year-old trader, reported family heirlooms and savings missing. Authorities criticised social media jokes and warned of severe personal and financial consequences.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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