An Italian man who robbed 12 banks in northern Portugal has been arrested by PJ Police

Italian caught robbing banks to pay taxman and tolls

An Italian man who robbed 12 banks in northern Portugal to pay debts to the taxman and unpaid tolls has been arrested by PJ police detectives

The 36-year-old had run into difficulties with his pizza restaurant in northern Portugal, which saw him accumulate a series of debts with the taxman and led to his failure to pay electronic tolls.

Using a plastic gun and with the help of a fellow countryman, he is believed to have robbed €92,000 from banks, which he used to repay a large sum of his debts to toll operators and the taxman.