BAGHDAD: Gunmen killed eight security guards and made off with nearly $7 million Tuesday during an early morning robbery at a bank in central Baghdad that police say is the work of insurgents attempting to finance their operations.
It is the second deadly robbery in a week in Baghdad’s commercial Karradah district. Although violence has dropped dramatically over the past two years, the number of robberies in Iraq appears to be on the rise.
A special committee made up of Iraqi army, police and bank officials was formed to investigate the robbery, which netted 8 billion Iraqi dinars ($6.9 million), according to an Interior Ministry official.
The gunmen broke into the state-run Rafidain Bank at about 4 a.m., killing three on-duty guards and five others on the premises, who were either on a break or asleep, said a police official.
Investigators believe the gunmen used silencer-fitted weapons during the attack because witnesses and neighbors didn’t hear any gunshots.
