Germany arrests 2 Dutch citizens in cyber bank heist

German prosecutors said on Friday they had arrested two Dutch citizens suspected of taking part in a $45 million global cyber heist unveiled the previous day by U.S. authorities.

A 35-year-old man and a 56-year-old woman were caught on February 19, withdrawing 170,000 euros in Düsseldorf using Bank of Muscat credit cards.

In total, $2.4 million dollars was withdrawn in seven German cities, the prosecutors said.

On Thursday, U.S. prosecutors said an international criminal gang had stolen $45 million from two Middle Eastern banks by hacking into credit card processing firms and withdrawing money from cash machines in 27 countries.

The ringleaders of the global operation were believed to be outside the United States but U.S. prosecutors have declined to give details, citing the continuing investigation. Germany is the only other country so far to announce arrests.

In the complaint on Thursday, the U.S. Justice Department accused eight men of withdrawing $2.4 million from 3,000 bank cash machines in New York in the space of 10 hours in February. The Department said seven of the men have been arrested.