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Thieves pull big diamond heist in Holland

Thieves hijacked an armored truck carrying diamonds and jewelry at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport on Friday and escaped with their haul, Dutch airline KLM said.
/ Source: msnbc.com staff and news service reports

Thieves hijacked an armored truck carrying diamonds and jewelry at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport on Friday and escaped with their haul, Dutch airline KLM said.

A spokesman declined to put a value on the loss, but the BBC cited unconfirmed reports that the load of “high-value goods” was worth at least 75 million euros (approximately $99 million U.S.).

The gems were on their way to a flight bound for Antwerp, Europe's diamond capital, when the robbers struck.

The robbers were heavily armed, a source close to the investigation told Reuters. The empty truck was later recovered.

“KLM security staff were threatened during the heist, but no one was injured,” an airline spokesman said.

Police and airport authorities declined further comment.