Life imitates art in Colombia robbery

By Jeremy McDermott
BBC correspondent in Bogota

Colombian thieves have robbed a high-security van in the city of Cali, using the same tactics shown in the Hollywood blockbuster Heat with Al Pacino and Robert de Niro.

De Niro plays the master criminal in the Hollywood movie Heat

Eighteen masked robbers drove a bus directly at the armoured van, getting away with $350,000 in cash.

It was all over in less than 20 minutes.

In the film Heat the robbers drive a lorry straight at an armoured van, dazing the crew. They then blow off the doors and steal the cash.

In Cali the robbers used a bus and opened doors in the same way, even using spikes on the road to slow down pursuing policemen - as in the Hollywood film.

The police said that the robbery had all the hallmarks of a professional gang in Cali known as R15.

The gang, which is believed to be made up of several ex-policemen, has staged a series of heists on banks and armoured vans over the last few years.