Gold thief escapes on getaway donkey
Lily Shanagher
The thief entered a jewelery store and escaped from the scene by running through the empty streets in the middle of the night, riding a donkey.
The man, identified only as “MC”, escaped after robbing a store in Kayseri, central Türkiye, on Tuesday.
Security footage shows that the masked suspect used a forklift to open the metal shutters of the shop, where he allegedly stole 150 grams of gold jewelry.
He first broke a window to reach the store’s counter, then pushed the glass-covered counter to the side and jumped over it, searching for items scattered on the floor.
The suspect then escaped by jumping over cabinets and out the window.
When he went out, he was caught on several cameras riding a donkey through the empty town.
The 26-year-old suspect was later found and arrested by the police and identified from security camera footage. In the video, he can be seen being escorted out of the station by two police officers.
Police officers later found the stolen gold jewelry wrapped in a black plastic bag and buried in a muddy field.
Police said the items, including rings, necklaces and bracelets, were returned to their owners.
The thief may have researched the effectiveness of using a donkey as an escape vehicle before planning his raid: in Colombia in 2013, thieves were thwarted when the escaping donkey made too much noise and alerted the police.
A group of men stole a donkey to escape while buying food from a shop. But the 10-year-old animal, named Xavi, refused to cooperate and brayed so loudly that police came to investigate and the criminals began to escape.
Xavi was held at the police station for 12 hours until his owner came to collect him.
Telegraph, London
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