It is the fourth bank robbery in Myanmar in recent months, but the perpetrators have yet to be identified.
A Kanbawza (KBZ) Bank branch in the northern Shan State town of Kyaukme was robbed at around 2 pm on Friday, according to local residents.
“I heard gunshots. Word had gotten around that 100 million kyat (US$60,777) was taken. The police are still investigating the robbery and have not released any information,” a local woman told Myanmar Now.
Police arrived at the bank around a half hour after the robbery, setting up roadblocks and carrying out searches of those passing through the area.
“Cars were being stopped and the police launched thorough searches,” said a local man who witnessed the searches when he went into the town that day.
He added that the nearby Baho market was closed, and that there were not many people around the bank, so the perpetrator or perpetrators might have been able to avoid being spotted.
Myanmar Now tried to contact the KBZ Bank and the Kyaukme police station for further information on how many perpetrators were involved and how much money was officially stolen, but neither the police nor the bank could be reached by phone.
There have been three other reported bank robberies in recent months nationwide. Global Treasure Bank was robbed in Yangon’s Mayangone Township on August 30 and the Myanma Economic Bank was robbed in Tedim, Chin State on August 25. On July 15, another Global Treasure Bank in Yangon—in South Okkalapa Township—was robbed on July 15.
The perpetrators of those bank robberies have yet to be identified.
source myanmar-now