Following a break-in at a Sparkasse bank in Gelsenkirchen, investigators estimate the stolen loot to be worth around €30 million. Initial rough estimates indicate this amount, Gelsenkirchen police said on Tuesday. More than 3,000 safe-deposit boxes in the bank’s vault were broken into. The boxes contained cash, jewelry, and gold. Based on an average insured value of €10,000 per box, the total loss is estimated at €30 million.
The break-in became known on Monday after a fire alarm alerted the fire department. According to police, the perpetrators accessed the bank from a nearby parking garage and drilled a large hole into the vault, which they later used to escape with the stolen items.
Witnesses reported seeing several men carrying large bags in the stairwell of the parking garage during the night leading into Sunday, police said. Officers have already reviewed initial video footage, which reportedly shows a black Audi RS 6 leaving the parking garage early Monday morning with masked suspects inside. The vehicle’s license plate had previously been stolen in Hanover.
A police spokesperson told AFP the break-in was “carried out in a very professional manner.” “There must have been a great deal of prior knowledge or criminal energy behind planning and carrying this out,” the spokesperson said.
On Monday and Tuesday, customers gathered outside the Sparkasse branch. According to the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, many of those affected were Turkish customers who had stored gold or gold jewelry in the safe-deposit boxes. Several victims reportedly told police that their losses significantly exceeded the insured value of their individual boxes.
Police asked customers who believe they were affected to first contact the bank directly. It is not necessary for individual victims to file a police report, as the bank is recording personal details and reported losses and forwarding them to police on a daily basis.
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