Bandits ambush armored truck at church

MONTREAL, July 3 (UPI) -- Police in Montreal Thursday were trying to locate three men who took a Canadian priest hostage before robbing an armored cash truck.

Police said before noon Wednesday, three men with hunting rifles entered St. Paul Roman Catholic Church, tied up a priest and locked him in a room, The Gazette newspaper reported.

The trio then waited for a scheduled cash pick-up by a Garda World Security Corp., truck. When the truck arrived, the trio ambushed the guards, taking them hostage and stripping them of their 9 mm handguns and uniform shirts, the Globe and Mail reported.

One guard was forced at gunpoint to open the truck, and several bags of cash were stolen, police said.

The van was found blocks away on fire, the Globe said.

Officers said the priest and guards were hospitalized in shock and hadn't been able to offer many details, the Gazette said.

The Globe said police didn't initially think any of the church's cash or valuables had been stolen.