Police arrested five men on Monday inside a BancoEstado branch on Vicuña Mackenna Avenue in Ñuñoa. According to police, they were attempting to steal equipment from the premises.
Emol reported this, citing Lieutenant Colonel Mariana Sepúlveda of the Eastern Police Prefecture. According to the officer, at around 18:40 the Communications Center received a report that at least five people were inside the branch.
The alert came from the bank's security staff. According to La Tercera, guards saw hooded individuals and noticed that the surveillance cameras had lost their signal. Police arrived and arrested the five "inside the bank branch," Sepúlveda explained.
While inspecting the premises, police found "multiple holes, at least three or four in different areas," according to the lieutenant colonel. Such a hole is an opening made in a wall or roof to enter a place.
Police are still investigating how they entered. The preliminary theory is that they entered from an abandoned property next to the bank. "The sequence of events is still under investigation," Sepúlveda said.
The officer explained that the detainees entered an area containing boxed computers and printers, "which they were removing from the premises." Police seized several tools, including a hammer, and a signal jammer, a device that blocks wireless communications.
The five are Chilean adults, and all have criminal records, according to police. One had an outstanding arrest warrant. The sources do not provide their names or the case number.
At the direction of the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Police Forensics Laboratory (Labocar) conducted forensic examinations at the scene.
For now, the case is at the detention stage. The five will appear for a detention review and formal charging hearing on Tuesday, October 13, during the afternoon session. At that hearing, a judge will review whether the detention was lawful, and prosecutors will be able to formally notify them of the alleged offenses and request precautionary measures.
