German police arrested four suspected ATM cash machine burglars in the Netherlands after an extensive investigation.
Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann announced on Thursday that the men are suspected of having used explosives to blast open ATMs in at least six locations in Germany since April.
Those kinds of brazen ATM burglaries have made major headlines across Germany, but police have struggled to track down the perpetrators.
The crimes are often believed to be carried out by Dutch criminal groups.
The four arrested suspects are between the ages of 25 and 30 and reside in the Netherlands, according to Bavarian state police.
More than 100 police officers, prosecutors and magistrates were involved in the investigation, including authorities in the Netherlands and across southern Germany.
The joint investigation has spent months looking into the rash of explosive cash machine crimes.
According to police, during the arrest and search operation in the Netherlands on Wednesday, nine properties were searched.
Herrmann said authorities “have succeeded in striking another serious blow against an unscrupulous gang of ATM burglars.”
He said evidence seized during the raids would be “meticulously analysed” in hopes of identifying other suspects or accomplices. (www.nannews.ng) (dpa/NAN)
