Stealthy thieves broke into a Japanese ninja museum and stole $9,400 worth of cash in a safe
- Staff at the Iga-ryu Ninja museum, located in Iga city, in the central prefecture of Mie, say thieves stole more than a million yen ($9,470) from the museum early Monday morning.
- Staff said that the thieves broke into the museum and stole a safe holding money from more than 1,000 visitors' admissions.
- Staff said the group was in and out of the museum in three minutes.
A group of thieves broke into a ninja museum in Japan earlier this week and stole more than a million yen ($9,470) in just three minutes, museum officials said.
Staff at the Iga-ryu Ninja museum, which is dedicated to the history of the practices of ninja and is located in Iga city, in the central prefecture of Mie, told CNN that the burglary happened early Monday morning.
The thieves stole an entire safe, which weighed about 300 pounds and held money the museum had earned from more than 1,000 visitors' admissions fees, the museum said.
"It was a three-minute job," a museum official told CNN. "It was planned, they must have scoped us out and singled us out."
According to the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper, translated by the Guardian, the thieves waited until nightfall, when the museum was closed, to carry out the crime.
The newspaper said the thieves then broke into the building by forcing a door open with a crowbar.
Museum security camera footage seen by CNN shows the suspects pulling up into the building. One of the suspects can be seen walking up to a security camera and turning it toward the ground.
No suspects have been named by police.
Ninjas date back to the 15th century, and were said to be trained and hired assassins who were known for their secrecy. Now they've become a subject of tourism in parts of Japan.
Iga is one of the main areas for ninja enthusiasts, and according to the museum's website, is partially where ninja practices were first developed.
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