Fortaleza, Brazil— Gunmen stormed a banking agency in Fortaleza on Saturday morning and left one security guard dead after a shootout that sent customers diving to the floor.
Police said at least three armed men entered the branch around 10 a.m. They announced the robbery and forced employees toward the vault. The guard drew his weapon.
What followed was a rapid exchange of fire inside the lobby. Witnesses described at least a dozen shots. The guard was hit twice and collapsed near the entrance. The suspects grabbed an undisclosed amount of cash and ran.
The Military Police arrived within minutes after a silent alarm was triggered. They found the guard without vital signs. SAMU paramedics confirmed the death on site.
The agency sits on a busy commercial street. Shop owners pulled shutters down. “We heard shouting, then gunshots. Everyone started running,” said a vendor across the street who asked not to be named.
Investigators recovered shell casings from two different calibers. Security footage from inside and outside the bank has been seized. Officers are now tracing a white car seen speeding away from the block.
The Ceará Secretariat of Public Security said the guard was a 42-year-old private contractor with eight years of service. The company that employed him declined to comment beyond confirming the loss.
Police set up checkpoints across two neighborhoods. No arrests had been made by early afternoon. Detectives believe the group had studied the branch routine.
The branch remains closed for forensic work. Customers have been told to use other locations while police review the tapes and interview staff.
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