French bank official charged with 2012 heist

A French bank official has been charged with a brazen 2012 robbery at a branch where he had been a manager, a judicial source said today.
The man and an accomplice staged the March 2012 heist at a branch of La Poste bank in a working class area of the southern city of Toulouse, making off with USD 490,000 kept in a safe.
The 42-year-old was charged with abduction and extortion yesterday, the source said.
The pair kidnapped an employee of the branch from a car park near her house after spraying tear gas on her face and threatening to use a Taser gun if she did not comply.

They took her to the bank and forced her to open its doors. The robbery was staged early in the morning before opening hours.
They also doused her with an inflammable liquid and threatened to set her alight if she did not obey their orders, the source said.