Mozambique: 30 soldiers detained over alleged involvement in Palma bank robbery – Carta

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Mozambique: 30 soldiers detained over alleged involvement in Palma bank robbery – Carta

11:22 CAT | 04 Nov 2021

FILE PHOTO - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: Screen grab TVM]

Thirty soldiers engaged in combating terrorist attacks in Cabo Delgado province are being held at the Cabo Delgado Provincial Penitentiary in Mieze, Metuge district, on suspicion of looting commercial banks during the terrorist attack on Palma last March.

According to Carta de Mozambique sources, the arrest took place shortly after an article was published by Carta in June, reporting the involvement of the military in the looting of three commercial banks (BCI, Standard Bank and Millennium BIM) in the town of Palma during the terrorist attack last March.

Read: Palma: Equivalent to US$1M looted from banks; town remains uncontactable via mobile phone – TVM | Watch

None of the soldiers has as yet had a criminal case opened against them.

The sources did not specify the dates of the arrests or the specialties of those detained, but say that events unfurled after a search of the soldiers as they were leaving the North Operational Theatre during the rotation of troops.

Sources told Carta that all soldiers who had more than 15,000 meticais in their bags were arrested. Some are said to have denied being the owners of bags containing more than 50,000 meticais.

The money taken from the bags of the soldiers detained has not yet been handed over to the Army Directorate, however.

It is alleged that, during the attack on Palma, more than 60 million meticais was stolen from the safes of the three banks in the Palma district headquarters town. It is still unclear whether the insurgents benefited from any part of the money.

By Omardine Omar

Read: Mozambique $1 mn bank heist; Inside al Shabaab – By Joseph Hanlon

Source: Carta de Moçambique