Lebanese Internal Security Forces officers in front of the courthouse in Beirut. (Credit: Hassan Ammar/AFP File Photo)
BEIRUT — Internal Security Forces (ISF) arrested a young man after allegedly stealing $80,000 from a woman’s home in Beirut's Zoqaq al-Blat neighborhood and attempting to flee to Syria, the ISF said in a statement Friday.
The woman reported on Monday that a Syrian national, born in 2000, had taken the money from her home and fled to an unknown location.
Following an investigation, the ISF said it received information indicating the suspect was heading north, likely attempting to flee to Syria through an unauthorized border crossing.
Police then set up ambushes along potential escape routes and apprehended the suspect the same day in Wadi Khaled, as he attempted to cross the border illegally. During the search, officers recovered $55,800 in cash.
"Upon questioning [the suspect], he confessed to the theft and admitted he had taken the money from the woman’s home and was attempting to flee to Syria through an unauthorized crossing," the ISF added.
The recovered funds were returned to the complainant.