Armed robbers yesterday made off with 170,000 euros in pension payouts following a raid on a van that had been taking the cash to a post office in Hania on Crete.

According to the van driver and the officer supervising the delivery of the cash, the four assailants used two trucks to trap the van on the national highway just outside Hania. The driver sustained a minor leg injury after one of the robbers fired a shot while threatening him and the second man to hand over the cash.

The robbers grabbed a bag containing the 170,000 euros that had been destined for Cretan pensioners and fled in another car that arrived to pick them up. The burnt wreck of the getaway car was found near the scene. This vehicle and the two trucks used in the raid had been stolen, police said. An additional 70,000 euros, in a separate bag in the van, was not found by the robbers.