ROME (Reuters) - Thieves used mechanical diggers on Wednesday to prise open an armored van on a highway in southern Italy and made off with more than 2 million euros ($2.3 million) in cash, police said.

The blue security van had left the city of Bari and was carrying pensions to be distributed in post offices in nearby Matera when it was blocked on the road by two lorries.

Two diggers then tore open the vehicle, using their mechanical arms like can openers to gain access to the cash.

The lorries were then set ablaze as the hooded thieves escaped with their loot in a waiting car. The three guards in the van were unharmed.