€4 million in loot still missing after Amsterdam armored truck heist
Over 4 million euros worth of precious metals are still missing after the violent robbery of an armored transport vehicle in Amsterdam on May 19, NU.nl reports based on documents from the case file which it had insight to.
The police said shortly after the robbery that all loot had been recovered. But research by Schöne Edelmetaal, the business where the robbery took place, and Brink's, the company responsible for the transport, showed that slightly over 4.2 million euros worth of materials are still missing.
The targeted armored vehicle was transporting precious metals from Germany and Belgium, worth a total of 67.3 million euros. The German shipment worth over 5 million euros was taken by the robbers, but was completely recovered. Just over 12 million euros worth of materials were stolen from the Belgian shipment. Of this, 2.8 million euros in platinum and gold are still missing, according to the newspaper.
The robbery happened when Schöne Edelmetaal was transferring material to Brink's. Schöne Edelmetaal's shipment was worth over 2 million euros. 1.4 million euros of this shipment is still missing.
At around 2:15 p.m. on May 19, men in balaclavas and bulletproof vests forced their way into a Schöne Edelmetaal branch on Meeuwenlaan, shortly after the Brink's armored vehicle arrived there. Schöne Edelmetaal employees and security guards were tied up while the robbers loaded loot into waiting cars. At least one robber fired a Kalashnikov into the air to keep people at a distance.
The police responded to reports of the robbery en masse and had a firefight with the robbers as they fled. Six of the ten suspects got stranded in a meadow in Broek in Waterland, where shots were fired back and forth. One of the robbers, a 47-year-old man from France, was killed. The other five were arrested.
The other four suspects fled via the A10 towards Diemen, where a burning getaway car was later found. One was arrested on the A16 near Kralingen later on May 19. The other three suspects are still at large. The suspects are from France and Belgium. Some of them have made confessional statements to the Dutch authorities, but all deny firing at the police, according to NU.nl.
The first preliminary hearing in this case will be held at the court of Amsterdam on Wednesday. The six suspects that were arrested are all still in pre-trial custody.
