News

Backhoe burglars hit ATMs in Texas, Va.

July 16, 2003

SAN ANTONIO, Texas and FREDERICKSBURG, Va. -- Everything is bigger in Texas, even the ATM thefts.

At least two men stole a Caterpillar backhoe from a construction site and used it to rip a Bank of America ATM from a bank parking lot in the early hours of July 16, according to a report in the San Antonio Express-News.

San Antonio police spokeswoman Sandy Gutierrez said it was the third heist of its kind since January. "Because of the similarities in these cases, the same suspects may be committing the ATM thefts."

A witness called police at around 1:30 a.m. after seeing two men in black using the backhoe to tear the machine from a Bank of America branch.

The witness saw at least one vehicle, but the men soon noticed him. "One of the suspects saw the witness and started chasing him with a gun," Gutierrez said, adding that the witness escaped unharmed.

The thieves hauled off the ATM in a blue Chevrolet pickup, police said. A second vehicle also was seen leaving the scene. Bank officials would not disclose how much money was in the stolen ATM.

Another ATM was knocked over June 4 at a Bank of America branch, although the thieves didn't get away with any cash or the machine then. Details about the third theft were not available, according to the Express-News.

In the suburban Washington, D.C. area, a trio of backhoe burglars had less luck.

According to a Washington Post report, police said that the would-be thieves pried a Bank of America ATM out of its concrete base with a backhoe, lifted it up, and then slammed it against the pavement repeatedly in an attempt to open it.

Prince William County police officers heard loud bangs coming from a parking lot behind the Bank of America building about 4:30 a.m. When they arrived, they found three suspects loading the ATM into a dump truck, said Dennis Mangan, a police spokesman.

"They smashed it up pretty good, but they didn't get into it," said Mangan, who noted that empty deposit envelopes were strewn across the parking lot, along with parts of the ATM.

Police said the dump truck recently was stolen in Prince George's County. They believe the backhoe, which was hot-wired, was taken from a construction site near the bank.

Police Chief Charlie T. Deane said it doesn't appear that the suspects got any money.

"In general, ATMs are very secure, very sturdy, and they are designed with safety and security considerations in mind," said Terri Bolling, a Bank of America spokeswoman. "The machines are designed to take all sorts of impacts. They are supposed to be opened in a specific way, and this isn't one of them."