Gunmen in daring US$50m diamond heist on Brussels airport

Machine-gun-toting robbers disguised as police made off with diamonds worth US$50 million in a spectacular heist on the tarmac at Brussels’ Zaventem airport.

Monday night’s robbery was “one of the biggest” ever, said a spokeswoman for the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, the global dealers syndicate.

Eight “heavily armed and hooded” thieves pulled up on the runway in two black vehicles with blue police-like markings, Brussels prosecutors’ spokeswoman Anja Bijnens said. They opened security barriers and sped towards an aircraft, where they forced open the cargo hold to reach the rough gems.

Bijnens said the raiders seized “at least 120 packages”, which was only a “partial” haul from the shipment aboard the Zurich-bound Helvetic Airways flight. Police later found a burned-out vehicle close to the airport. 

An airport spokesman could not explain how the area could be so vulnerable. “We abide by the most stringent rules,” he said.