They said armed with a pistol and a watchdog the gang, which posed as security men, attacked a foreign accountant of the company who is in his 50s, handcuffed him and took the money which represented the salaries of the company’s staff.

The police said an investigation team was formed to trace the thieves and in a few hours five of them were caught in Riyadh and two others in Jeddah.

The police said the thieves bought a new car from the stolen money, which was confiscated. The police did not identify the thieves but said they were all in custody.

In a similar development, Riyadh police said a 35-year-old Arab expatriate was caught after he tried to steal money from a money transfer company. They said the thief, who was a friend of the security guard, was able to sneak into the company’s branch on King Fahd Street but fled after the alarm was set off. He left behind an electric saw, a lamp and a pair of gloves.

The police said the company’s cameras showed him entering the building.