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Photo released by the FBI from the entrance area of the bank
Photo: Korge;
Johannes / FBI Houston / X
The US Federal Police are actually very familiar with bank robbers.
But this case from the southwest of the USA is likely to be an exception, even for hardened FBI investigators.
The FBI has arrested three boys aged 11, 12 and 16 who are said to have robbed a bank in the US state of Texas.
As the US Federal Police office in Houston explained on the online service
The minors, whose names were not published due to their age, were taken into custody on Tuesday.
The FBI released a photo of the suspects after the March 14 bank robbery.
It shows the boys in the entrance area of the bank, wearing hoodies.
The investigators had written: “Do you recognize these little rascals?
Believe it or not, they just robbed the Wells Fargo Bank."
The term “little rascals” probably refers to a US TV series “The Little Rascals,” which can be translated something like this in German.
Parents recognized two of the children
Local television station KTRK, citing Harris County police, reported that the children handed a "threatening message" to a bank teller and then fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash.
It is assumed that they were armed - even if they did not display a weapon.
Two of the boys who were not masked during the attack were recognized by their parents and reported to the police.
The third boy was apparently arrested by officers after a physical altercation and identified as one of the suspected bank robbers.
It is still unclear whether they acted on their own initiative or were instigated by an adult.
The whereabouts of the stolen money are also still unclear.
According to current status, the boys could be taken into juvenile detention until they are 19 years old.
A suspended sentence until the age of 18 would also be possible, according to local broadcaster ABC13.
jok/AFP