Easter heist leaves questions
In one of the largest cash heists in Los Angeles history, thieves made off with as much as $30 million (U.S.) in an Easter Sunday burglary at a San Fernando Valley money storage facility, an L.A. police official revealed Wednesday.
The burglary occurred Sunday night at an unnamed facility in Sylmar where cash from businesses across the region is handled and stored, according to L.A. Police Department Cmdr. Elaine Morales.
The burglars were able to breach the building as well as the safe where the money was stored, Morales said. Law enforcement sources said the break-in was among the largest burglaries in city history when it comes to cash, and the total surpassed any armouredcar heist in the city as well.
Mystery surrounds the break-in.
Sources familiar with the investigation said a burglary crew broke through the roof of the facility to gain access to the vault. But it is unclear how they avoided the alarm system.
The Canada-based security company has not responded to requests for comment.
The operators of the business did not discover the massive theft until they opened the vault Monday. Authorities were alerted, and detectives from the LAPD’s Mission Division station responded to the crime scene to gather evidence.
Further adding to the intrigue is that very few individuals would have known of the huge sums of cash that were being kept within that safe, according to the law enforcement sources.
The break-in was described as elaborate and suggested an experienced crew of burglars who knew how to gain entry to a secure facility unnoticed.
An FBI spokesperson confirmed Wednesday night that the agency and the LAPD are investigating the theft.
A federal source said investigators were trying to complete a full accounting of the missing cash, but said it could end up being the largest cash heist in L.A.’s history.
Jim McGuffey, an armoured car expert and security consultant, called the Sylmar theft “a shock.”
Any such facility should have two alarm systems and a seismic motion detector right on the safe, he said, as well as additional motion sensors throughout the building.
“For that kind of money, you don’t just walk in and walk out with it,” he said. “A facility should be protected from the top to the bottom and the sides.”