A thief grabbed a bucket of gold flakes worth about $1.6 million from the back of an armored truck in Manhattan in broad daylight and lugged the 86-pound loot for blocks along the busy streets before disappearing.
Surveillance video released by the New York Police Department shows the thief grabbing the bucket out of the truck on West 48th Street when a guard moved to the cab of the vehicle to get his cellphone, NBC 4 New York reported.
"I think he just saw an opportunity, took the pail and walked off," NYPD Det. Martin Pastor told NBC 4 New York.
The incident occurred on Sept. 29, and police are still looking for the suspect — who they think may be hiding out in Florida — and the gold. He is described as a Hispanic man, about 5 feet 6 inches tall, 150 pounds and between 50 and 60 years old, CNN reported.
The video shows the man struggling with the weight of the bucket, pausing to rest at one point, The New York Times noted. What normally would be a 10-minute walk took the man about an hour before he jumped into a van at 49th Street and Third Avenue and disappeared, NBC 4 New York said.
Pastor told the news station that officials don't think the man knew what was in the bucket.
"I think when the lucky charm opened up the bucket, he seen the rainbow and seen the gold," he told the station.
The unusual incident sparked amusement and speculation among Twitter users.
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