Southeastern Italy is a hotspot for dramatic car robberies by organised crime groups, particularly in the Puglia region

Masked gang blow up armoured truck on Italian highway in audacious heist

Masked robbers armed with AK-47s blew up an armoured van on a motorway during a dramatic heist in Italy.

Around half a dozen men, wearing balaclavas and either all-black outfits or white overalls, emerged from cars surrounding the cash transporter in Puglia, at 8am on Monday.

In an Italian Job-style operation, an explosion blew the doors and roof off the van, owned by security company Battistolli, sending parts of the vehicle into the air.

Engulfed in smoke, traffic came to a standstill as motorists travelling on the road between Lecce and Brindisi looked on. A driver heading towards the unfolding chaos filmed the blast and subsequent raid as it happened.

The Italian robbers blew up the cash transport van on a road in the Puglia region

The Italian robbers blew up the cash transport van on a road in the Puglia region (Social media)

The bandits appeared to unload the van’s contents into one of the cars while at least one crouched behind another vehicle to keep watch.

Italian media reported that some of the other cars caught up in the ambush were also robbed, though it is not yet clear how much money the gang ultimately got away with.

A shootout ensued when police arrived on the scene, using vehicles for cover as the armed bandits opened fire. Pictures shared by Italian media showed one police car with a bullet hole in the windshield, right above the steering wheel.

The explosion was followed by a shootout with police

The explosion was followed by a shootout with police (Social media)

However despite the fracas, no injuries or fatalities were reported among the Carabinieri who attended the scene, the Italian police said.

The robbers fled, prompting a police chase followed by a manhunt in the countryside near the town of Squinzano.

Two suspects were captured after trying to make their escape through a field after abandoning a white Alfa Romeo. A second vehicle, a Jeep, was found near the scene of the arrest and at least two others remain at large.

A man in white overalls keeps watch with a gun while his accomplices appear to unload the van during the robbery

A man in white overalls keeps watch with a gun while his accomplices appear to unload the van during the robbery (Social media)

Italian news outlet Sky TG24 reported that the bandits hailed from the Foggia area of Puglia, a region which ranks second in terms of attacks on armoured vehicles.

Around €1.6bn (£1.4bn) worth of valuables were stolen between the years 2019 and 2023, Savip, the union for security guards, told The Times. Similar highway attacks having been recorded in 2024, 2023 and 2021.

Investigations into the heist are ongoing.

A shootout with police ensued, followed for a manhunt for the armed gang

A shootout with police ensued, followed for a manhunt for the armed gang (Social media)

“Once again, the Carabinieri found themselves on the front lines of an extremely violent and organised criminal act,” Puglia regional secretary general of Un Arma, Nicola Magno, said on Sky TG24 .

“The fact that a patrol was hit by gunfire demonstrates the high level of risk to which our officers are exposed on a daily basis.

“It is only thanks to the professionalism, composure, and sense of duty of our colleagues that today we are not talking about a tragedy.”