Lillyrose Welwel, Leah Lowonbu and Doug Dingwall, ABC
Vanuatu Internal Affairs Minister Andrew Napuat and Police Commissioner Kalshem Bongran said the robbery suspects were quickly tracked down and arrested. Photo: ABC News: Lillyrose Welwel
Three men wore white hazmat suits when they used a rifle to stick up a truck full of cash outside a Pacific Island airport in broad daylight.
Making off with A$600,000 (NZ$699,000) belonging to financial services group Western Union, the trio quickly disappeared after executing what is believed to be Vanuatu's first organised armed robbery.
The brazen heist at Port Vila International Airport on 29 December has stunned Vanuatu and become the talk of a nation unused to such overtly public acts of crime.
Local police say the robbery was "well coordinated, well orchestrated, well planned".
In the Pacific country of 330,000 people, where most of the population lives in rural villages on remote islands, armed robberies have until now been more Hollywood than reality.
Social media users responding to the news were quick to liken the airport heist to the movies, as details of the hold-up emerged.
"This is Fast and Furious movie in its extreme heat," one commenter said.
"Seems like watching a movie," said another.
Port Vila International Airport is a gateway in Vanuatu for foreign currency. Photo: ABC News: Doug Dingwall
In the days following the heist, a public hungry for information waited for more updates on the crime and police investigation.
But local police initially said little, other than a recorded statement released on Facebook in the hours following the robbery.
Port Vila residents told the ABC that rumours filled the vacuum instead.
Most speculation at the nation's kava bars and on social media focused on the identities and whereabouts of the alleged robbers.
But information travels fast in the island nation, and the Vanuatu Police Force appeared to act on its leads on Tuesday when it arrested the alleged heist ringleader at the country's northern island of Santo, before flying him back south to the capital Port Vila.
And finally, on Thursday, police revealed more details of the crime and investigation at a press conference in Port Vila, confirming they had arrested seven other suspects after tracking them down within a week of the robbery.
Most stolen money recovered: police
Police Commissioner Kalshem Bongran detailed the events that unfolded at midday on 29 December.
He said three robbers followed the Western Union vehicle that was carrying cash to be weighed at the airport and sent overseas.
They blocked the truck with their own white mini-van, emerged from their vehicle to assault the driver, and stole the cash before escaping, he said.
Luganville, the main population centre on Espiritu Santo in Vanuatu's north. Photo: ABC News: Doug Dingwall
Police began a search, and with the help of information from the community, started making arrests within three days of the robbery, the commissioner said.
Commissioner Bongran said seven of the eight arrested suspects were in a correctional centre in Port Vila.
Another was in hospital under the watch of police, being treated for boils, and would be moved to correctional facilities later, he said.
He said the suspects were being held under suspicion for their involvement in the robbery, and that police would clarify the charges at a later date.
Vanuatu Police Force had recovered about A$592,000 (NZ$690,000) of the stolen money and had confiscated both the firearm and mini-van, he said.
A police source has also told the ABC two of the suspects are sons of a former MP who was jailed for corruption a few years ago.
Commissioner Bongran said police were still investigating the robbery, both in Port Vila and Santo, where the alleged ringleader fled.
Internal Affairs Minister Andrew Napuat said Vanuatu's government was treating the crime "with the highest level of concern".
"The incident represented a serious criminal act and was an unprecedented event," he said.
He appealed to a bewildered public to remain calm and said the police response showed Vanuatu's law enforcement was able to address serious crime.
"We have strong rule of law in Vanuatu," he said.
"The decisive action we've taken has contained this incident already."
Port Vila is known as one of the Pacific's safer cities, but residents have been shaken by the airport robbery. Photo: ABC News: Doug Dingwall
Residents report feeling unsafe after heist
For many in Port Vila, the armed robbery still does not feel real.
Winy Marango, who lives near the airport, said she first thought reports of the robbery on social media were a joke.
She said the incident had shaken ni-Vanuatu people and that Port Vila, one of the Pacific's safer cities, now felt less so.
"For me, it [felt] a little bit unsafe for us, like walking around alone," Marango said.
In the days after the robbery, she took precautions about where she walked in the city at certain times of the day.
"And back home, I would usually not lock the door at night, but then during that one week, we also [checked] doors and made sure that they were locked properly."
Marango said Port Vila would need to improve security as it continued to grow.
"Especially in public places where we deal with money, we should have strict securities, even at the airports, having police services around the airport area," she said.
"But then it comes back to giving awareness to our communities and ensuring that young people are aware of what could be the consequences of committing such crimes as this."
Speaking before Thursday's press conference, community youth advocate Edmond Saksak was also concerned about the lack of information from police about the case.
"Our government and even the law enforcement needs to be more transparent. Information needs to be out there because you see now, no one knows anything," he said.
Saksak said much public debate about the robbery had also compared the crime to the misuse of public funds by politicians - an issue that would need a nation-wide response.
"This robbery is not only about provinces or youths or pointing fingers, it's about all of us," he said.
"We must work together to stop this kind [of act]."
But action on crime required leaders willing to inform and work with the public, he said.
"If you want this nation to change, you cannot do anything up there without us."
- ABC
