After leaving a French bank branch in Lyon, the armored car belonging to security company Loomis was suddenly raided by armed attackers at around 9am (local time). No one was injured in the attack "but the damage was up to 9 million euros (about 10.7 million USD). The robbers fled immediately," prosecutors said in a statement to AFP.
This is said to be the largest cash robbery in France since the notorious robber Toni Musulin took away 13.8 million USD in 2009, most of which has since been recovered. Initial reports said that two trucks blocked the armored vehicle from both the front and rear. They robbed the driver, took the money and fled on 2 cars - then were discovered burned.
"It was a bold attack, right in the city center. The most important thing is that cash advisers are safe," said Loomis CEO Michel Tresch.
Kader Bengueche, a union member of Loomis, said that the three employees are in shock and will see a psychologist on August 31.
Cash processing company Loomis (Sweden) has been attacked many times in recent years. In May 2017, $41 million worth of goods including cash, diamonds and gold bars were stolen from one of the company's vehicles in Switzerland. In December 2016, thieves took away 70 kg of gold worth $2.9 million from a branch near Lyon.
In March this year, another notorious French robber, Redoine Faid, was sentenced to 28 years in prison for attacking an Loomis truck with explosives in the northern town of Calais in 2011.
