The police said Monday they arrested a gang of pickpockets who distracted their victims by pretending to produce the Egyptian version of the worldwide popular television show "Candid Camera."
The two truck drivers and an unemployed man made away with around one million pounds (270,000 dollars) in several months while robbing 28 people leaving banks in the capital, police said.
Taking their cues from the television show, they used a video camera and approached their victims with strange requests, triggering confusion and laughter that allowed them to take any money they had on them.
The trio later informed their victims they were producing skits for the "Candid Camera" show, which is broadcast annually during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which began in late November this year.
They were uncovered when they approached an official with the ministry of social affairs, Nabil Mohammed Tayaa, who sounded the alarm and got them arrested, police added.
It was not immediately clear how they managed to take so much money, but in the absence of a credit economy, many Egyptians pay cash when they buy cars or make other large purchases -- CAIRO (AFP)
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