Taipei police probe into robbery targeting money transport vehicle

TAIPEI, March 7 -- Taipei police have shown to public Saturday a

surveillance video regarding a robbery of a money transport vehicle that

happened here Friday, turning to residents for evidences on its possible links

to similar robbery cases in recent years.

According to the police, the robbery occurred at the Fuhsin Branch of the

Cathay United Bank at about 3 p.m. on the rainy Friday. A criminal, wearing a

raincoat and a dark safety hat, shot an escort personnel six times and took two

bags of cash worth2.78 million New Taiwan Dollars (about 80,000 U.S. dollars).

The robber drove away on a motorcycle.

The escort was injured in the legs but is in no danger of life currently.

The police reported the brand and style of the motorcycle and two series of

possible car plate numbers. They hoped people who have lost or have seen such

motorcycles would provide clues as soon as possible.

The police said it was the sixth time that such kind of robbery occurred in

Taipei since October 2002. The looted money totaled more than 20 million New

Taiwan dollars. All cases occurred in rainy weather and all offenders wore

raincoats and safety hats, and most of them shot escort personnel in the legs.

The police said they were comparing similar unsolved cases in an attempt to

find out whether it was the same robber.