Thieves Manage To Pull Off An Insane $300 Million Jewelry Heist

When an estimated $300 million in jewelry and money was stolen this past weekend from London's jewelry quarter, the reality wasn't anything as funny as "The Great Muppet Caper."

CNN reports as many as 70 safety deposit boxes in Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Ltd. were robbed.

The thieves took advantage of the extended Easter holiday weekend and a newly-installed but reportedly inactive alarm system to patiently pick and choose what they took.

Although the investigation is ongoing, The Guardian reports police fear the robbery may have been an "inside" job.

The criminals timed their heist around the installment of the safety deposit firm's new security measures and left no signs of forced entry into the building.

Police say thieves reportedly disabled an elevator before descending the shaft into the basement vault.

Once there, they used a powerful drill to burrow through the safe's 6.5-foot-thick concrete wall and access the boxes therein.

Victim Norman Bean, who lost multiple pieces of jewelry he'd stored in the vault, told the BBC,

They could have been there all weekend, who knows? It's a disgrace, it's like something out of a film.

After 60 years of business, the safety of Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Ltd. has certainly been called into question.

Citations: Huge haul of gems and cash stolen in Hatton Garden heist in London (CNN)