Four people "covered from head to toe" robbed a Habib Bank branch in Sharjah on Tuesday.
At 11.30am the gang entered the branch and sprayed a substance on employees and customers before robbing the bank, according to an Emirati man who preferred not to be named.
The man said his friend told him about the incident after being told what happened by a Habib Bank employee.
“He told me that his friend said they felt dizzy after they were sprayed with that substance by the attackers.”
The man said they did not know whether the thieves were men or women.
A Sharjah policeman said one of the four attackers threatened bank employees with a knife.
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Noor, a security guard for an investment car park near the branch, said he saw the attackers as they got out of a car and went into the bank.
“They were covered from head to toe, and went in and out quickly,” said the Afghani, whose room overlooked the bank's main entrance.
Police patrols rushed to the bank, closely followed by forensic experts who are reviewing CCTV footage for evidence.
Police cordoned off the area for investigation and blocked people from entering and exiting the bank.
News of the robbery spread among employees of other banks on Corniche Road.
"What? Habib Bank has been robbed now? It’s just right next to us,” said an employee at a bank less than a kilometer away as he received the news from a friend who worked at another bank.
Police said the total amount of money stolen was still being calculated.