A GROUP OF ARMED ROBBERS CHARGED INTO a high-stakes poker tournament in Berlin, Germany, Saturday in a brazen attempt to steal the $1.3 million jackpot.
The four masked men armed with guns and machetes stormed into the tournament room at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Berlin’s Potsdamer Platz at 2:15 pm and made a rush for the money cache.
Over the next several minutes there was a brave resistance mounted by the security guards who managed to reclaim a large part of the jackpot cash that was in several bags.
Security cameras throughout the game room recorded much of the holdup and the crowd reaction. This raw video from AP shows some of the footage:
Much of the tapes have not been released by the police who say that they believe they can identify the culprits from the videos. They are not disclosing how much of the money ended up being taken, but have said it’s in the “low six-figures.” A later report says that it was about $140,000. A security guard who tackled one of the robbers was able to save a large part of the loot.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Police officials said the robbers appeared to be less than professional. Detectives said they are reviewing video of the heist, which they said shows at least one robber who failed to wear gloves.
“We obtained fingerprints,” Mr. Gassen said.
Detectives said they are also reviewing surveillance video of the hotel and surrounding area. Police said they hope to trace the path of the robbers from the earliest possible on-camera sighting prior to the heist, until they made their getaway. Mr. Gassen declined to say whether police have clear pictures of the robbers without their masks.
“I am confident we will solve the case,” he said.
Read their full REPORT HERE.
About 1,000 players are expected to participate in the 5-day tourney which was resumed about 4 hours after the holdup.
The Sun (UK) has more HERE.
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