Last year there was just one ‘classic’ bank robbery in Holland

The classic bank robbery by armed men is on its way out in the Netherlands, the Volkskrant says on Wednesday.

In 2013 there was just one, compared with 13 in 2010, the Volkskrant says, quoting police figures obtained using freedom of information legislation.

The number of raids on security transports is also down sharply, the paper says.

‘Banks no longer have a lot of money on the premises,’ a police spokesman said. ‘The money is kept in ATMs and they have been made increasingly secure in recent years.’

Police efforts to reduce armed robberies in general are also paying off, the paper says. In 2011 there were 2,272 armed robberies on shops, company premises and private individuals. Last year, however, this had fallen to 1,633.

Amsterdam, however, is an exception, the paper says. Last year there were 232 armed robberies in the capital, a rise of 19% on 2012 but down on 2010’s total of around 400.

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