Hatton Garden: Fears rare aqua diamond worth £500,000 snatched in London deposit box raid

BURGLARS smashed their way into a safe deposit centre and escaped with a haul worth millions of pounds, it was revealed today.

Armed with heavy cutting equipment, the gang broke into the building in London’s Hatton Garden via a lift shaft.
After prising open 300 safe deposit boxes and safes, the thieves made off with gold, diamonds, jewellery, antiques, art works and cash.
One jeweller fears an half-cut aqua diamond worth £500,000 may have been snatched in the raid.
Hatton Garden manufacturer Norman Bean, 68, said: "A friend had a half-cut aqua diamond in there. He's terrified it has gone.
"I have £35,000 of stuff in there including a pear-shaped diamond ring.
The dramatic Easter bank holiday raid was only discovered when staff turned up for work at the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Ltd this morning shortly after 8am.
Flying Squad detectives are investigating. Specialist forensic officers are trying to establish exactly how the gang entered the building and how they disabled the hi-tech alarm system.
CCTV in the area will also be examined. One line of inquiry is that the raiders had some “inside information” about the lay-out and security of the centre.
The gang, who had up to four days to carry out the theft, may also have been tipped off about the amount of gold, diamonds and other valuables stored at the centre over the holiday period.
But it may take weeks to discover exactly what has been stolen as some clients are likely to be reluctant to disclose everything they deposited.
The raid sent shock waves through the jewellery world today.
Thelma West, a gemologist, designer and private jeweller who works in London and Antwerp, tweeted: “Robbery at one of the biggest safe deposits in Hatton Garden over the Easter weekend. The loss is huge.