Five arrested after gun shop break-in triggers helicopter manhunt in Sion
Swiss police arrested five people and two accomplices after a break-in at a Sion gun shop overnight, capping a large-scale manhunt involving drones and an army Super Puma helicopter.
The break-in
Shortly before midnight on Friday, unknown perpetrators forced the main door of a gun shop in Sion, the capital of Valais canton. They stole an unspecified amount of goods and fled in a car with French license plates. The Valais cantonal police were alerted immediately.
The manhunt
A large-scale search was launched, involving the cantonal police of Valais and Vaud, municipal police from Monthey and Martigny, the regional police PRVC, the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (BAZG), and dog units. Technical assets included drones and a Swiss army Super Puma helicopter equipped with night vision and a thermal imaging system (FLIR). The operation concentrated on the Saint-Maurice region.
The Valais cantonal police are calling on the public to exercise extreme caution. Anyone who notices behaviour or circumstances that could be connected to this case is asked to report it immediately to the police on 117. They are expressly asked not to intervene or attempt to make contact with the wanted persons.
- Break-in at Sion gun shop; perpetrators flee in French-registered car
- Large-scale manhunt launched with multiple police forces
- Search continues with drones and Super Puma helicopter in Saint-Maurice region
- Police announce arrest of five people and two accomplices
Arrests
Shortly after 10:00 on Saturday morning, the police announced on X that the manhunt had ended with the arrest of five people and two accomplices. The public prosecutor has opened criminal proceedings, and no further details will be released to protect the investigation.
The large-scale manhunt ended with the arrest of five people and two accomplices.
A series of robberies
The break-in is the latest in a series of gun shop robberies across Switzerland. In recent months, similar incidents have occurred in Yverdon-les-Bains, Renens, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, and Evionnaz. Two weeks ago, a Sion gun shop was targeted by five people who used explosives to blow open the entrance door; they were arrested hours later. Last year, in the canton of St. Gallen, a gun shop and a shooting range were looted within 24 hours.
