Thieves have stolen an enormous £23m ($30m) in cash from a money storage facility in one of the biggest heists in Los Angeles' history.
The suspects broke in through the roof on Easter Day, and the raid wasn't discovered until the next day. The police are puzzled as to how the thieves managed to avoid setting off the alarm at the facility in the Sylmar area of the San Fernando Valley. This facility is used to store and handle cash from local businesses, revealed police commander Elaine Morales.
The police will be investigating if it could have been an inside job as only a few people would have known about the large amount of cash stored in the vault there. The Los Angeles Police Department says they are working with the FBI on this case.
Investigators think that an experienced group of burglars were behind the heist due to the sophistication of the operation. This burglary comes nearly two years after as much as $100 million in jewels were stolen from a Brink's big rig at a truck stop in southern California, reports the Mirror US.
The thieves were never caught. They made off with the haul at 3 am on July 11, 2022, stealing more than 20 large bags of jewellery, gems and other items that the Brink's tractor-trailer had been transporting. The theft happened during a 27-minute window when one driver was sleeping in the vehicle and another was eating a meal at the truck stop.
Last August, a well-known Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) shop was robbed by a large "flash mob", with the thieves stealing clothes and add-ons worth around $400,000. The crime happened at an upscale mall called Glendale Americana at Brand in Los Angeles and involved about 30 robbers who quickly raided the store.
Videos of the burglary were shared online and showed the criminals, wearing black clothes and masks, swarm into the YSL shop. They grabbed anything they could get their hands on and left within seconds. No one reported any weapons used during the theft.
When Ramirez was caught, Chief Manuel Cid of the Glendale Police Department also had something to say. He promised everyone living in Glendale and all over Los Angeles that these smash-and-grab thefts won't be ignored.
The robbery videos also captured the covered thieves rushing out of the YSL shop, their arms filled with stolen goods. They broke display cabinets and grabbed luxury items right off them. CCTV footage even showed a thief dragging a huge metal shelf behind them.
A posh leather handbag, which still had a security tag on it, was attached to the shelf. But despite this, the crooks got away with many expensive designer clothes and accessories.
Chief Manuel Cid of the Glendale Police Department said: "I assure all members of the Glendale community and the broader Los Angeles region that these brazen smash-and-grab robberies and burglaries will not be tolerated." They quickly ran to waiting cars parked at the kerb, where about 20 cars were ready. The suspects then sped off in different directions.