WFDB President pledges its support to Belgian diamond authorities after Brussels heist

The approximately $50 million diamond heist at Brussels airport on Monday when a Swiss aircraft was targeted by gunmen and robbed of rough and polished diamonds "has sent shock waves through the diamond community", the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) said in a statement.

Eight gunmen drove two black vehicles with flashing blue lights onto the tarmac to an awaiting passenger plane. Brandishing machine guns, they removed parcels of diamonds from the cargo being sent to Zurich from Antwerp.

“A diamond heist, no matter how big or small, is always a threat to our industry,” said WFDB President Ernie Blom.

“Antwerp is a world hub for diamond traders and I trust that the Belgium authorities will do all in their power to prevent this kind of thing from ever happening again. Air transportation is a vital part of our industry and we need a secure and safe environment to conduct business in when it comes to transporting such valuable consignments.

"The WFDB pledges its support to the authorities and will make any resources at its disposal available to assist investigators and we trust that these criminals will be apprehended soon.”