Unbreakable Vault:-
The bank vault had a 20-ton heavy door, while its walls were also reinforced with iron. The makers were so sure of it that they didn't even install a security alarm in the bank vault. Because it was referred to as an "unbreakable vault." Its illusion was shattered when the criminals devised a master plan, outsmarted the security for a full 27 hours, and remained hidden in the vault.
What was this master plan, and why is it considered the biggest bank robbery in history?
July 19, 1976.
Before we discuss that, let's go straight to the day of July 19, 1976. The sun had risen on Monday, and staff members had started arriving at Societe Generale Bank in the city of Nice, France. This bank was considered to be the most secure bank in the world and has the strongest vault till today. What happened was that, according to the routine, the Bank Staff went to open the vault. It was a very heavy door with an extremely complicated lock. They entered the lock combination, but the door did not open. It's important to know that this door had faced issues several times before as well. Because it weighed about 20 tons, it often got stuck. The bank staff felt that it was still stuck as usual, so they contacted the Vault manufacturing company. After half an hour, the company's experts came to the bank and started attempting to open the door. But the surprising thing was that even the experts from the company couldn't open the door this time. They made several attempts, but this door was not ready to open in any case. The matter was getting serious now because customers were waiting in line, and this was now a question of the bank's reputation. After 3 hours of trying, they finally decided to drill a hole in the vault's wall to see what was causing the door to remain stuck. There were no signs of forced entry on the vault door, and no marks were found on any of its four walls either.
When they peered inside after drilling a hole using a heavy-duty drill machine, they discovered that someone had welded the vault door shut from the inside. This scene was quite hard to believe as there was only one way into the vault. There was no source of light inside, and there were no windows, meaning it was impossible to enter the vault from within. Now, seeing this, everyone had realized that there must be something abnormal here. They arranged machinery and decided to break through the vault's wall to gain entry. This task was quite time-consuming because the walls were thicker than regular walls and there was also iron reinforcement between them. Well, after many hours of hard work, a hole was made so that a human could enter through it. And when they looked inside, the sight was unbelievable. The bank vault had been looted; some lockers were broken while others were left open. And the most interesting thing, these famous words were written with spray paint on the vault's wall. The English translation of those words is "without arms, without hate, and without violence." Just as the bank staff was regaining their composure, they discovered a tunnel had been dug beneath the vault floor. Now the duty was that of the police, which had reached by that time. The robbers had broken into 400 out of the 4000 safe deposit boxes inside the vault, taking valuable items including money and gold blocks, before making their escape. The tunnel they had dug was leading into the city's largest underground sewerage line. There, the police found a lot of evidence, including tools and 27 gas cylinders, with the help of which the robbers had lit a welding torch. Not only that, ventilation equipment for fresh air in the sewerage line and electrical cable about one kilometer long were also found. This heist was worth more than $20 million. Today, its value is estimated at $110 million, which is equivalent to around 900 crore rupees. It was not only the biggest bank heist of the century, but this police investigation also has the status of the biggest investigation in France. Well, this thing has now spread all over the world. While the bank's reputation had certainly suffered, This incident was also a source of great regret for the French police. For the next several months, the police pressed hard, apprehended individuals in the vicinity, and interrogated bank staff. But no trace of robbers could be found from anywhere.
October 1976
Then, after three months, in October 1976, the police received a significant lead. A member of the robbers' group had been captured based on a tip from his own girlfriend. At first, he was denying any involvement, but when the police pressed him, He eventually broke down and divulged the entire gang's name. What astonished the police was that this gang was notorious for committing small and petty thefts. They had done such a big bank heist, this thing was not being digested. The mastermind of this plan was actually someone else. During the interrogation, gang members provided the police with a name of an individual who, according to them, was the mastermind behind the heist. This man named Albert Spaggiari was actually a photographer. When the police arrested him, he did not look like a criminal from anywhere, simple dressing, simple lifestyle and lived in a normal house in the outskirts of the city. When inquiries were made with his neighbors, Everyone said that Albert is a simple photographer who always minds his own business. But what the police were thinking about Albert Spaggiari, he was completely different from that. He immediately confessed to the police that he was the mastermind of the bank heist. The case was almost closed for the police, but it was just the beginning. According to Albert, he had previously taken a locker in the same bank and on the pretext of going to the vault, he used to capture photos of all the things. He first kept an alarm clock in his own locker, setting the alarm for nighttime. When the alarm went off and no one was alerted, and neither did any security alarm sound. So, he had confirmed that there was no security system installed in the vault. Then he went to the city government office in the guise of an engineer and took out a map of the city. He estimated where the sewerage line on this map, and how far is it from the bank? Then he calculated that after digging a 26-foot tunnel from the nearest sewerage line, he can go straight to the bank vault. Now, this job required a lot of work, so Albert contacted a gangster in the city and told him the whole plan. That gangster assigned his henchmen to work on this task. It took about two months to dig the tunnel, as the work was being done without machinery. And it was very important to do this work only at night when there is no one in the bank.
During this time, Albert made every effort to ensure that no noise would reach anyone up to the road above the sewerage line. Then on 18th July, the night between Saturday and Sunday, they finally entered the Vault. For the next 27 hours, they calmly carried out the heist, during which they even had lunch and dinner there. And they wrote down those famous words as they were leaving. The police presented Albert in court, where he also admitted his guilt in front of the judge. During the interrogation, he had written the evidence of his plan and the details of the looted money in a code word on a paper. He said that he will give this evidence only to the judge and only the judge will be able to read this code word. For this task, the judge summoned Albert to his chamber. Albert handed over the paper to the judge, which contained a map of the city. Just as the judge was beginning to comprehend the map, Albert immediately jumped out of the room through the window. The room was on the 1st floor, and there was a car parked below it. Albert fell onto the roof of the car and immediately stood up and escaped by sitting on a bike that was already waiting for him. Despite the police's relentless efforts, they couldn't catch him. After several years, his interview was broadcast on a TV show in Italy. In which he mentioned that I had a keen interest in treasures from the age of twelve. And I fulfilled this passion through this heist. It seemed like he was teasing the French police through this interview. After that, where did Albert go, this mystery has not been solved till today.
1989
Albert Spaggiari died in 1989. His mother said that Albert's body was left outside her house.
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