A 21-year-old suspect slipped through the hands of authorities in Berlin as special police units stormed an apartment in the city's Neukölln district on Tuesday.

The youth is believed to be one of several robbers who made off with priceless loot from Dresden's Green Vault (Grünes Gewölbe) in November 2019.

"We had a reasonable suspicion that he was staying in the apartment," Lorenz Haase, spokesman for the Dresden prosecutor, said on Tuesday.

Investigators identified the suspect as Abdul R. in accordance with German privacy law. The authorities are still searching for him "with utmost effort," the spokesman added.

Suspect's twin in custody

German authorities believe the criminal Remmo Clan to be behind the Dresden heist. The organization, comprised predominantly of ethnic Arabs, has a strong presence in Neukölln.

In November 2020, German police deployed around 1,600 officers for a crackdown in the district. The raid ended with three suspects for the Dresden robbery arrested, although Abdul R. and his twin brother remained at large. Abdul's twin was eventually arrested last month.

Loot still not recovered

While searching the Berlin apartment on Tuesday, police discovered two cellphones and several documents. However, they have yet to find any sign of the stolen 18th century jewelry, including the historic Dresden White Diamond. Many fear that the loot had been broken up into parts and would remain lost forever.

One of the Dresden suspects had already been convicted for stealing a 100-kilo (220 pound) gold coin from the Bode museum in Berlin in 2017.

dj/rs (dpa, EPD)