Police said Sunday they have caught a suspect who fled to Vietnam last month following a credit union heist in South Korea's central city of Daejeon.
The man is suspected of robbing a branch of the National Credit Union Federation of Korea in Daejeon in August, threatening employees with a pre-prepared weapon.
After stealing 39 million won in cash (US$29,115), he escaped on a stolen motorcycle and then departed for Vietnam some two days after the alleged crime, according to the Daejeon Police Agency.
Police found the man at a casino in the Vietnamese city of Da Nang based on a tip-off by a South Korean residing there and put him under emergency detention at around 4:55 p.m. (local time).
Police have been in close cooperation with Interpol and Vietnamese authorities over the course of apprehending him, the agency added.
The man's family and friends told police that he had got into debt due to gambling, which could be a motive for the heist.
"He appears to have spent all the stolen money," an agency official said. "We are now discussing (with local authorities) the process to bring him home for investigation."
Source: Yonhap News Agency