Heist
!
You've probably
seen heist movies such as 'The Heist' (Gene HAckman) or the new version
of 'Ocean's 11' (George Clooney) which glorify the art of robbery with
special effects and a lot of interesting plot lines but how is a heist
operation really run. How is a heist practically applied in real life
?
February
2002 saw two similar heists at Heathrow Airport, London in which millions
of British pounds were stolen by a team of robbers. This was a recent
highly organized robbery that received international attention. While
a private security official was loading two canisters containing the cash
he was approached by two men who knocked him down to the ground and handcuffed
him, they took away the canisters into their own van and sped away. After
an intense manhunt 12 people were arrested and part of the stolen cash
was recovered.
This robbery
was obviously partly organized; the handcuffs used to subdue the security
guard were constructed of plastic and not metal so as to avoid metal detectors
when bringing them into the airport. The robbers' van was disguised as
a common British Airways van so as to avoid detection and this was later
dumped and burned at a remote location to destroy all traces of evidence.
Evident was the lack of use of weapons, the only person affected was the
security guard who had to be treated for shock. It is very clear that
the robbers studied the transfer of the funds and identified the weak
link in the chain of security which was when this one guard loads the
canisters into his van or more probably the robbers were given a tip from
an insider on the security flaw.
Heists, like
the incident at Heathrow are based on exploits. The robbers would study
the situation and identify a weak security link for their purposes or
receive a tip from an insider who has been contemplating the security
exploit for his own profit.
The robbers
in this case failed in various parts of their operation. The van they
used and dumped was obviously traced back to them even though it was partially
destroyed. All vehicles have a VIN number stamped into the frame that
can trace the vehicle as far back as to the manufacturer. Also the two
operatives who performed the robbery failed to use an adequate disguise
and were very probably captured on one of the many video surveillance
equipment at Heathrow, simple modifications to their appearance could
have greatly baffled the investigators. And last but very importantly
the police were able to recover the stolen cash at the same location as
the robbers, had they hidden the cash immediately after the robbery the
prosecutors would have no evidence against them in court and they would
be able to reacquire the funds even after they have been jailed for years.
Advanced
Operation
For discussion purposes let us assume the responsibility of carrying out
a heist/robbery operation using real high tech techniques for the purpose
of succeeding in the attempt. This hypothetical heist will be based on
urban guerilla warfare and advanced military methodology.
The controller
and synchronization
the heist has to have a controller (person) running the show out of a
secure location. This person directs the operatives to their respective
tasks as he has a general overview of the whole operation. Operatives
are fitted with communication equipment so they can synchronize their
activities with the controller. The controller also has access to a large
amount of information related to their activities so that he can advise
the tactical operatives on all the variable routes of action they can
take. The controller is also the only one who can carry out critical decisions,
he has the power to change the way the operation is being carried out.
The Operatives
The footsoldiers of the heist carry out specific tasks to accomplish their
objective. Each operative is usually a specialist in a particular field
that is necessary to complete his mission. This sounds more like a movie
than real life but it is actually necessary to achieve an objective, it
is a lot less glamorous than shown by hollywood. A locksmith is required
to bypass the perimeter of the location, e.g the front door of a house
or business location. One or more enforcers are required to use force
if necessary to control a subject. Lookouts are very necessary to warn
of the onset of danger such as the arrival of police or unwanted people.
Lookouts are very useful and can be used to feed information back to the
controller so that he can keep track of the progress of the heist. Diversionists
who can also be Lookouts can avert or control unwanted attention. A Driver
or Drivers to aid in transportation, drivers are nearly always present
in every kind of heist.
Roundevouz
location
This is where the team meets after the job is done, the team should never
meet at the base of operations but rather assign a secondary location
where evidence can be disposed of and further action is analyzed and taken.
After
the Heist
If the stolen goods are cash which is the best way to do things, it is
important to launder or hide these funds as soon as possible. One way
is to simply mail them to a secure bank account in portions, or even to
several bank accounts. EVen burrying in steel boxes is a good idea as
they cannot be used as evidence if they are not found. Gold and valuable
goods are not a good idea to steal as they can easily be traced back to
the owner and so the robber is to that fact vulnerable.
Disposal
of Evidence
All the equipment directly related to the heist has to be disposed of
and renderred unusable by forensics scientists, this includes body traces
such as fingerprints, hair and blood. Burning everything is not good enough,
the tools have to be incinerated to dust and literally scattered over
a mountain so that no trace whatsoever remains. Vehicles can be especially
difficult to work with this way but it has to be done.
Final
Novel Ideas
A few quick ideas; If such high technology is to be used why not break
into a location and break out without anyone knowing the heist ever happened
until they discover the absence of the goods after a weekend. This gives
the robbers time to work on the 'AfterHeist' and a lot of witnesses will
forget what they saw after a few days. Evidence will be trampled and busied
on rendering it useless and the people robbed will suspect one of their
own personnel due to the lack of evidence of a break-in and they will
waste time before calling the police. By that time the Heist team will
be clear with very little evidence pointing back to them !
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