LONDON (AP) — At a time when many robberies take place at the click of a mouse, a group of jewel thieves has shown there's still a potential payoff for old-fashioned criminals willing to use disguises, planning and pluck to nab their loot.

Monday's theft of some $50 million worth of diamonds from the tarmac of Brussels' international airport is a "huge blip on the radar," said retired FBI agent Bill Rehder, who spent more than three decades on Los Angeles' bank robbery squad.

"You can almost liken it to the meteor that hit in Russia," he said, referring to the space rock which exploded last week over the city of Chelyabinsk, injuring hundreds. "These things happen so infrequently, but when they do happen it's a huge story."