Cleon March, the acting Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of crime, has confirmed that the robbers in Sunday's daring heist of a Beryllium van absconded with $23.2 million.
He also revealed that the cops are pursuing several excellent leads to apprehend the perpetrators and that "a breakthrough is imminent".
"Since the robbery in the St Catherine South, police have pulled out a lot of resources. I have earmarked several strategies to assist in the investigation. I am proud to announce that we are advanced in terms of the progress of our investigation, we are making steady progress," March told OBSERVER ONLINE.
He did not divulge any details due to the sensitive nature of the ongoing investigations.
"We have identified who are the possible perpetrators and we are making inroads in concluding this investigation, it is very complex and multi-faceted, but we are up to the task and we're very optimistic that a breakthrough is imminent, very soon," a confident March said.
About 12:40 pm on Sunday, brazen gunmen, armed with high-powered weapons, launched their attack on a team from Beryllium Limited at Braeton Parkway, in the vicinity of Scotiabank, while they were in the process of servicing the ATMs attached to the bank building.
READ: SHOWDOWN AT HIGH NOON - Another Beryllium team attacked during ATM servicing in Portmore
The attack sent people scampering for cover as gunshots pierced the Sunday afternoon quiet. Four security officers were shot and injured, Beryllium confirmed, and the police said the bandits made off with an undetermined sum of money.
READ: Beryllium Limited cooperating with police investigation following Sunday’s attack
This is the third attack on Beryllium teams in just under a year, the second of which happened at the end of February when gunmen staged a brutal morning attack, less than a mile away from Sunday's attack.
In that heist, gunmen used the same modus operandi, striking as personnel delivered cash to a Jamaica National Bank ATM in the Portmore Pines shopping centre. One Beryllium member was killed and two injured as the thieves made off with approximately $10 million.
READ: Security guard shot dead as robbers escape with $10 million
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