Gang steals millions in stunning Paraguay heist

DOZENS of suspected Brazilian gangsters blasted into a secure vault containing millions of dollars in southeastern Paraguay on Monday, leaving a policeman dead in what officials called the “robbery of the century”.

Some 50 gunmen with explosives and military-grade weaponry left the city of Ciudad del Este looking like a war zone after a two-hour overnight assault on a security firm and police headquarters, authorities and witnesses said.

A joint Paraguayan-Brazilian police operation against the fleeing assailants on the country’s porous border killed three suspects and resulted in “at least four arrests”, Paraguay’s Interior Ministry tweeted.

Brazilian authorities confirmed there had been a deadly clash but would not give more details.

The target of the raid was Prosegur, a firm specialising in safely transporting cash. Far from simply overwhelming security at the facility, the raiders caused multiple diversions around the city, setting vehicles on fire to block roads and detonating explosives near police headquarters.

Police reports said the attackers included members of First Capital Command, one of Brazil’s most powerful drug gangs, which is based in Sao Paulo and has fought turf battles in Rio de Janeiro and across the country’s prison system.

It remained unclear just how much the assailants made off with. Public prosecutor Denise Duarte said the Prosegur vault “was full” at the time of the robbery. Police said the vault can hold up to $40 million in cash but authorities had yet to verify the amount.

The attackers abandoned several vehicles at the site, including armoured trucks, one of them mounted with what was described as an anti-aircraft gun.

Police reports said the attackers included members of First Capital Command, one of Brazil’s most powerful drug gangs.