Belgian court releases detainee of Georgian origin arrested for tunnel bank robbery

A Belgian court will release a 27-year-old Georgian man who was arrested for the robbery of a bank in Antwerp, De Tijd newspaper of Belgium reports. 

The Belgian national of Georgian origin, identified only as Koba. M., was arrested on 4 February. The prosecutor’s office has appealed the decision to release him. 

The detainee’s lawyer says the court found the evidence insufficient adding his rights were violated because of intense coverage by the media.

The criminals accessed the vault of the BNP Paribas Fortis branch via two underground tunnels and sewers. 

The burglars are believed to have dug a tunnel from a home several hundred meters away from the bank into the sewage system, and then a second tunnel from a sewer into the bank, the Associated Press reports. 

A homeowner said he had rented an apartment to two brothers several months ago. 

The bank alarm system activated but robbers succeeded in fleeing the scene. 

The other suspects are still at large and wanted by the Antwerp Police.