Basel, Switzerland, seems to be the most recent European city to fall victim to a spate of casino heists occurring recently. A gang of masked men raided a Basel Casino, getting away with hundreds of thousands of Swiss francs. This happened just a week after the Swiss government approved the expansion of gaming.
Early on Sunday morning, 10 men dressed in black successfully managed to rob the Grand Casino of Basel. The thieves arrived at the casino in two Audi sedans with French license plates and proceeded to smash open the front door. The men then entered the casino brandishing machine guns and pistols and ordered the 600 guests and employees to drop to the ground. Investigators said the men were speaking French. The casino is situated approximately 650 feet from the Swiss-French border and five minutes from the Basel airport.
A few of the guests and casino guards were mildly injured as the men emptied registers and unsuccessfully tried to break into the safe. After the robbery the men made a getaway towards the French border, where the Swiss police managed to lose them. The thieves got away with hundreds of thousands of francs.
This heist was similar to the March 6 robbery of a poker tournament in a hotel in central Berlin, where thieves got away with €240,000.
The Swiss government gave the green light for certain regions to seek casino licenses, and the upper limits of bets to be increased, just a week before the robbery. The green light was given after it was determined by the Swiss government that casinos where not the cause of higher rates of gambling addiction.
