The brazen heist took place underground as the street above is protected by dozens of CCTV cameras, several armed soldiers and even a police station.
The thieves not only evaded high security, they also managed to escape with their lives as the claustrophobic sewers can fill with water and poisonous gases.
Antwerp cops have not as yet said how much, or what exactly was stolen, but they were first alerted to a possible vault breach on Sunday.
According to the city’s prosecutor, the bank's security firm called about a burglary in the vault at 1.34pm.
Upon arriving at BNP Paribas Fortis Bank, in the baroque city’s diamond quarter, they found the vault door was locked – yet about 30 safe deposit boxes had been cleared out.
Associated Press reports that it was only after they’d forced their way inside that they realised the sheer audacity of the theft that had taken place.
'LOT OF DRILLING AND BANGING'
Aside from the empty boxes, they found a hole in the floor and a tunnel leading into Antwerp’s sewer system.
Further inspection revealed that a tunnel had been dug from a home several hundred metres away, into the narrow pipes.
One woman living near the house used by the thieves told Het Nieuwsbald that she had heard “a lot of drilling and banging” prior to the discovery.
According to The Times, the criminals accessed the first tunnel from the house to access sewers to get as close as possible to the bank.
From there, a second tunnel was dug about eight metres into the bank vaults.
Given the dangerous environment, and noxious vapours, they used oxygen cylinders and diving gear to clamber through the system – with their gear later discovered by cops.
The Times reports that a mattress was also found, possibly used to help cushion their knees or stomachs while they “worked”.
Els Liekens, an engineer for Aquafin, the city’s wastewater management firm, said: “I do not know how these burglars got out alive.
I do not know how these burglars got out alive. They were very well prepared, or very lucky.
“First of all, digging the tunnel towards the sewage system was dangerous for the robbers themselves because of a possible subsidence.
"And inside the sewer, you have all kinds of danger, such as gas concentrations coming from the waste water.
“They were very well prepared, or very lucky.”
BNP Paribas Fortis told VTM Neiuws that it did not want to comment because of the police investigation.
The BBC says that bank customers aren’t happy about the lack of information, as some of the safety deposit boxes contain their life savings.
One said: “A lot of people are not only keeping money or jewels, but also family pieces.”
Police in Antwerp were today still searching for clues in the diamond raid that has all the hallmarks of a classic Hollywood heist movie.
Though the force has so far been unable to quantify what the thieves made off with, clients were lining up by the dozen on Monday to find out if their boxes had been emptied.
The prosecutor’s office said: "We are investigating the size of the robbery and we cannot provide further information.”
No suspects have as yet been caught.
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