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CASH DEPOT ROBBERY

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Helicopter suspect held on Caribbean island

A 30-year-old Swedish man suspected of having a role in the brazen helicopter-aided robbery of a Stockholm cash depot has been arrested in the Dominican Republic.

Helicopter suspect held on Caribbean island

On Wednesday, Swedish media reported the arrest overseas of a man with a ‘secret identity’ for whom an arrest warrant had been issued.

But prosecutor Leif Görts, who is leading efforts to bring charges against those responsible for the robbery of the G4S cash depot in Västberga south of Stockholm, refused to divulge any more details about the man or his arrest.

“He has been detained in another country and will now be repatriated here,” Görts told the TT news agency.

But Spanish media reported on Thursday that the man was a 30-year-old Swede who was arrested in a northern province of the Dominican Republic, along with another wanted Swede.

The arrests were carried out by the Dominican anti-drug and migration police.

According to the Spanish daily El Pais, both men will be repatriated to Sweden shortly.

The Södertörn District Court on Wednesday issued a remand order for the man under a secret identity. A remand order is a prerequisite for issuing an international arrest warrant.

The man is the eleventh person suspected of having a role in the spectacular heist who is not behind lock and key.

The robbery took place in the early hours of September 23rd. After first stealing a helicopter, the thieves then landed it on the roof of the cash depot, which they entered by smashing through a skylight.

A short time later, the robbers climbed back in the helicopter with an undisclosed amount of cash. The helicopter was later found abandoned near a wooded area north of Stockholm.

The other ten suspects, all between the ages of 23 and 38, were detained during the autumn and all but one is a Swedish citizen.

Some are been convicted of serious crimes, while others have never been found guilty of committing any offence.

The prosecutor said he hopes to be able to present a formal indictment at the start of the summer.

According to El Pais, the man suspected in the helicopter heist had previously been convicted of aggravated robbery for his involvement in the 2000 robbery of Sweden’s National Museum in which three expensive paintings were stolen.

Görts on Thursday refused to comment on the Spanish media reports, saying only that the man suspected in the helicopter robbery is expected to arrive in Sweden soon.

“Then we’ll hold another remand hearing straight away,” he told TT.

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ROBBERY

Axe-wielding robbers steal €400k of jewels from luxury Paris hotel

French police are searching for a team of robbers who stole thousands of euros' worth of jewels and luxury clothing in a nighttime raid at a plush hotel in Paris.

Axe-wielding robbers steal €400k of jewels from luxury Paris hotel
Thieves targeted the Peninsula Hotel in Paris. Photo: AFP

Two men wearing balaclavas and gloves entered the Peninsula hotel, just a stone's throw from the Arc de Triomphe, shortly after midnight and held employees at gunpoint, police sources said.

One of the attackers then used an axe to break into four display cases, making off with items worth a total of €350,000 to €400,000.

An accomplice then drove them away in a car that was found burning shortly afterwards in the suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine, west of the capital.

No shots were fired and no one was injured in the robbery, the sources said.

France's organised crime brigade has taken over the inquiry.

Luxury Paris hotels have been the target of several robberies in recent years, as have jewellery stores and wealthy tourists visiting the city.

In January 2018, three men were charged over an audacious yet unsuccessful jewellery heist at the Ritz, after they were thwarted by locked doors as they tried to flee.

Last September, three Russian tourists were robbed of thousands of dollars' worth of jewelry and luxury clothing shortly after landing at a Paris airport reserved for private jets.

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