Gang of robbers steals $470 million of diamonds in Brussels airport heist

A lightning raid by a ‎gang of robbers at Brussels Airport on Monday night saw them get away with a reported $467 million of diamonds.

The airport authority said the robbers broke through an fence with two cars and stole the diamonds which Belgian news channel VRT said were worth $467 million.

The robbers struck as the diamonds and other high-value items were unloaded from a plane of the Swiss airline.

"The men in the car rode to a Swiss airplane where they stole valuable goods," Brussels Airport said on its Facebook page. "There was no shooting and no one got injured. This lasted only a few minutes and after that, they left the airport domain through the damaged fence.

"The police has started a thorough investigation and the airport police is currently taking all the necessary actions. An on-site investigation is being carried out as part of the judicial inquiry," the air authority added.

The airport added that the Swiss flight took off as scheduled.

The thieves pinpointed a van belonging to security firm Brink's which was in the process of loading the diamonds on the plane whose destination was Zurich.

VRT reported that a burnt-out vehicle was later found on edge of Brussels, and police are looking into whether it could have been one of the gang's getaway cars.