$50,000,000 heist pulled off in Brussels in 5 minutes

BRUSSELS (AP) — Eight masked gunmen forced their way through the security fence at Brussels' international airport, drove onto the tarmac and snatched some $50 million worth of diamonds from the hold of a Swiss-bound plane without firing a shot.

The gang responsible for one of the biggest diamond heists in recent years used two black vehicles with a flashing blue police lights in their daring raid late Monday, said Anja Bijnens, spokeswoman for the Brussels prosecutor's office.

"They tried to pass themselves off as police officers," Bijnens said Tuesday. The robbers, who wore outfits resembling dark police clothing, got away with 120 parcels, mostly containing diamonds but some also holding precious metals.

Police said they found a burnt-out minivan believed to be involved in the robbery near the airport later Monday night.

The heist was estimated at some $50 million in diamonds, said Caroline De Wolf of the Antwerp World Diamond Center. "What we are talking about is obviously a gigantic sum," De Wolf said.

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The robbers finished their clinical operation with a high-speed departure through the same hole in the fence, completing the spectacular theft within barely five minutes, Bijnens said