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They Pulled Off a $70mn Bank Heist Only To Be Kidnapped for the Money
The 2005 Brazilian Banco Central burglary and its complicated aftermath.
One of the biggest bank robberies of all time was pulled off in 2005. It was the central bank of Brazil — Banco Central that was the target and a total amount of R$160mn or US$71mn based on the exchange rate at the time was stolen from the Fortaleza branch.
The case remains only partially solved to date and only a fraction of the total money has been since recovered.
However, what makes the case most interesting is the events that followed. Many of the men believed to be involved in the robbery became victims of kidnappings.
The Bank Heist
What needs to be understood is this was a physical burglary and not a cybertheft where money was moved from one server to another.
Needless to say, that large sum of money being moved takes some doing. The gang that executed this, were at work for months before the actual theft took place. About three months before the burglary, the gang of criminals rented a commercial property near the bank and dug a tunnel that was 78 meters long and covered two city blocks to a spot right under the bank.
