Two more arrests in multi-million euro Amsterdam armored truck robbery
The police in France and Belgium arrested a man and a woman suspected of involvement in the violent robbery of an armored truck in Amsterdam-Noord on May 19. The arrests were made on Monday and Tuesday, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) said. On Tuesday, the homes of the suspects were searched, as well as a shop in Paris.
The 20-year-old female suspect is from Ganshoren, Belgium. The second suspect is a 44-year-old man from Paris. The woman was arrested at her home, and the French man was on his way there when he was arrested. During the searches, several items were seized including cars and data devices.
The robbery was committed in broad daylight at Schöne Edelmetaal on Meeuwenlaan. The robbers allegedly used automatic firearms and a knife to threaten workers, and fired into the air outside the property. They used tie-wraps to bind employees of the company. The police arrived at the incident en masse and gave chase when the robbers took off in several fast cars. The flight ended in a meadow near Broek in Waterland. There, a 47-year-old French suspect was shot dead by police in a shootout.
Six men between the ages of 24 and 44 from countries including France and Belgium have already been detained. During the ensuing investigation, the Dutch police cooperated with the police in Belgium and France, with the support of Eurojust.
The total loot from the robbery was valued at more than 14.5 million euros, of which more than 4 million euros is still missing. The suspects who were previously arrested will appear in court in Amsterdam on November 15 during a second status hearing.
The Netherlands will ask the Belgian and French authorities to surrender the two new suspects, so that the criminal investigation and prosecution can continue in the Netherlands. A spokesperson for the OM would not say what role they attribute to the two suspects. Authorities were still investigating the occupants of an Audi that was set on fire after the robbery near Diemen.
"The police and the Public Prosecution Service have previously said that they are looking for at least three more suspects. It is still too early to indicate whether the persons arrested now can be counted among those three suspects. The police and the Public Prosecution Service have not ruled out the possibility that more arrests could follow," a press release said.