Several armed individuals executed a daylight bank robbery in Naples, taking 25 people hostage before disappearing through an underground tunnel.
Law enforcement agencies converged on a branch of Crédit Agricole in the southern Italian city shortly after the incident commenced around midday local time, which corresponded to 10:00 GMT.
Reports from local media indicated that negotiations with the assailants preceded the release of the hostages, approximately two hours after the robbery began. Footage circulating on social media depicted firefighters utilizing battering rams to break through a window, assisting individuals as they exited the building. Some of the liberated hostages appeared to recover quickly, stepping over glass fragments and walking away. Others, however, exhibited clear signs of distress, crying and embracing family members. Six individuals who were experiencing shock received immediate medical attention.
One male hostage later shared with the local news outlet Fanpage.it that their captors had confined them to a room. He noted that despite being armed, the robbers abstained from using physical violence.
Fortunately, no serious injuries were reported. Regional official Michele di Bari stated in an official release, “Thanks to the swift response… all the hostages were freed shortly after 13:30 without serious injuries.”
A significant assembly of onlookers, including local residents and emergency personnel, congregated in the adjacent square awaiting updates. Simultaneously, tens of thousands of individuals monitored a live stream broadcast from the scene.
Special forces units of the Carabinieri, Italy’s armed police, were dispatched urgently from Tuscany. It was several hours after their arrival that they initiated an assault on the bank, breaching a window.
The live broadcast captured the sound of several gunshots and the detonation of stun grenades shortly thereafter. However, by that point, media reports indicated that the perpetrators had already made their escape via a tunnel, with speculation that they may have accessed the city’s sewer system.
Later video footage showed numerous Carabinieri officers and firefighters examining a nearby manhole as onlookers continued to gather in the square. According to Fanpage.it, the exact value of the stolen goods remained unquantifiable at that time, as the robbers had targeted personal safety deposit boxes rather than cash holdings.