Police succeeded in catching four of the gunmen who took 52 hostages in a bank robbery which lasted 30 hours in Venezuela.                                                                 

On Tuesday police blocked a highway that was leading to the western part of the country, in order to catch the gunmen that escaped in an ambulance from the bank taking five hostages with them as body shields.

According to Justice Minister Ramon Rodriguez Chacin, the men were stopped and the hostages were freed. They’ve thrown their guns and were detained.

Guarico state Gov. Eduardo Manuitt said: "The hostages are free. This nightmare is over."

On Monday five men took 52 hostages in a bank in the town of Altagracia de Orituco, Guarico state and during negotiations some of the hostages were freed.

They fled the bank in an ambulance threatening to kill some of the hostages every 20 minutes if police doesn’t let them go. Two hours later they were caught.

In the last hours of the robbery, hostages that were inside the bank held up signs in the windows calling for help.

From the 52 hostages five were released during negotiations and two escaped, according to Rodriguez. Five minutes later five hostages were taken to the ambulance by the gunmen while the other 40 were left free behind, the Associated Press reports.

Among those freed there was a 2-week-old infant, three children under 10 years old and a pregnant woman in eight weeks.

According to Rodriguez, the gunmen were under the influence of drugs.

The five hostages were unharmed and just one gunman had accidentally shot himself in the leg.

Rodriguez called it an impeccable work by police.