Boys, 13 and 14, Face Seven Bank Robbery Charges

The robberies were well-planned and executed with steely precision: seven banks in the Vancouver area held up in six weeks. There were no weapons, no violence. And the robbers responsible for the hold-ups? They were aged 13 and 14.

Police in Vancouver arrested three boys at the weekend in the southern suburb of Surrey. The two 14-year-olds and one 13-year-old were at a Sky Train station, the elevated transit service used to make their getaways. All three, who face charges of bank robbery, were released into the custody of their parents. Police did not disclose how much was taken.

None of the boys had had previous dealings with police. But in their methods, they revealed a clear presence of mind and discipline, criminologist Ray Corrado told the Canadian press. Each hold-up started with a note passed to the bank teller, cash in small denominations was handed over, and then the trio headed for the nearest Sky Train station.

"The typical youth that engages in this type of serious offence is often impulsive, opportunistic, angry, and they typically talk to a lot to their buddies and it gets out fairly quickly," Mr Corrado told Associated Press. Not these three. It was especially unusual that the boys carried on robbing "not just once or twice where you go 'OK, that was fun, that was a thrill'," Mr Corrado said. "The fact that they kept repeating it and moving around, not using a gun, it's very clever."

Vancouver has the highest incidence of bank robberies in Canada, but police were shocked at how young the three were. "I still cannot for the life of me comprehend at the age of 13 ... ever considering doing something like this," police spokesman Roger Morrow said. A youth court hearing was set for May 24.