Diamond heist in Antwerp

A man stole $28 million worth of diamonds from an Antwerp bank where he had been a trusted customer for a year using a stolen Argentine passport, officials said Monday.

Prosecutors say the suspect broke into safety deposit boxes in an ABM Amro bank in the city’s diamond quarter last week. He made off with diamonds weighing 120,000 carats, police said.

The story continues:

In 2003, in the world’s largest safe-deposit box theft, thieves in Antwerp pried open 123 boxes, finding so much loot they could only carry away $100 million worth of diamonds, gold and jewelry.

Maybe I'm overlooking something, but it seems that these Antwerp banks entrusted with what must be billions in gemstones maintain lower safe deposit security than my ordinary American branch bank. I'm never left alone when I'm in the vault area, and though I'm no expert, the individual boxes look like they'd take some pretty heavy-duty hardware to open up.

Posted by David on March 13, 2007 11:36 AM