Nerve Endings Firing Away

In a grim homage to Ocean’s Eleven, thieves presumably from either the First Command or the Red Command, the two largest organized criminal gangs in Brazil stole nearly $65 million from a bank. They carried out their elaborately planned scheme on a weekend allowing them enough time to escape before their act could be discovered on Monday when the bank reopened. The modus operandi was simple — they rented a house across from the bank and dug a 200 feet tunnel underground to steal their money. I can almost see Hollywood buzzing with possible movie plots.

Unfortunately the sad news was to follow — Brazilian taxpayers would have to bear the burden of this daring heist. The money wasn’t insured (except for transport insurance) so unless the thieves are apprehended, there is no way of recovering the money. On one hand, it was a daring and well planned act but then so was 9/11. Although no one died, $65 million is lot of money and burden on the taxpayer is significant. I hope this act isn’t glorified in the media or elsewhere. Some people have already found the whole thing quite funny because of the way the act was carried out. It also seems that it was a repeat of a previous robbery done at Sao Paulo. It is indeed unfortunate that the authorities haven’t learnt much. I would love to hear how the Brazilian public is reacting to this news. Well, in India, we have a knack to idolizing criminals.