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Gelsenkirchen Bank Heist: Police Confirm Manipulated Escape Door as 230-Officer Task Force Probes Alarm Lapses

Months of forensic work lie ahead with losses still unclear.

Overview

  • Investigators say the gang entered from a parking garage through a tampered emergency door and drilled a roughly 40‑centimeter hole into the vault.
  • Digital logs show the first safe‑deposit box was forced open on December 27 at 10:45 and the last at 14:44, with the break‑in discovered on December 29.
  • Police are reviewing about 10,000 hours of video and cataloguing an estimated 500,000 items from the vault floor, work expected to take months after the scene was contaminated with chemicals.
  • Reports now scrutinize an early fire alarm response in which firefighters and a police officer checked only a foyer; separate reporting cites investigator circles saying alarms may have been disabled and a door prepped with silicone, claims not officially confirmed.
  • The value of the haul remains undetermined, with estimates reaching into the triple‑digit millions; contents were insured via the bank only up to €10,300 per box and lawyers for victims are preparing claims as insider assistance remains under investigation without a named suspect.