Disturbing footage of a series of deadly bank heists in Brazil showed a gang of armed robbers strapping hostages to their getaway vehicles to be used as human shields on Monday (August 31).
CNN reports three people died in relation to the incidents in which suspects targeted several banks in the city of Aracatuba, which is located in the southeastern state of Sao Paulo.
The robbers reportedly positioned bombs throughout the city in an effort to distract local police. Local law enforcement confirmed a man lost both of his feet when the bombs were detonated.
Amid the bombing incident, the heavily armed robbers held up three different banks and took numerous hostages with them.
The hostages were then tied to the roofs and hoods of 10 cars used in the armed robberies to serve as human shields during the getaway.
WARNING: Viewer discretion is advised some viewers may find the footage shown below distressing.
Sao Paulo Military Police confirmed two of the individuals killed in the incidents were victims and one was a suspected robber, while five others were injured, CNN reports.
Five of the suspects were arrested on Monday, while a squad of more than 380 police officers continues to search for more than a dozen suspects who remain at large in connection to the crimes.
School classes in Sao Paulo -- which has a population estimated around 200,000 -- were suspended after the explosions took place in the city.
"They [the criminals] had inside information that one of the banks had a large sum of money, so they went to the city," said Sao Paulo public security secretary Alvaro Batista Camilo via CNN Brazil.
Police believe more than 20 heavily armed men were responsible for the attack, which also included drones used by the suspects to monitor the streets as they planned to enter and escape the city, Reuters reports.
Police urged local residents to stay in their homes until all explosives were located and deactivated.
Monday's incident was the latest in a string of bank heists in Brazil, following two similar incidents last December on consecutive days in Cametá and Criciúma, both of which took place at branches of Banco do Brasil, according to Reuters.