STRATEGIC PARTNERS
December 2, 2001
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- ATM thieves have hit more than a dozen convenience stores in four counties in Florida and Georgia over the last few months, leaving wrecked buildings, busted-open ATMs and stolen vehicles in their wake, according to a report in the Tallahassee Democrat.
A theft ring - estimated to be about eight or nine men - has stolen thousands of dollars in a string of middle-of-the-night heists. They steal vans or trucks, crash them into convenience stores, grab the ATMs and take off, police told the Democrat.
"They're real proficient," said Leon County sheriff's detective Paul Sauls. "They're in and out in less than a minute, 15 seconds. They don't worry about the alarms, they don't worry about cameras."
Sauls said the thieves are suspected in at least one summer break-in in South Georgia and a few other cases in Leon and Gadsden counties since mid-September. But they stepped up their activity in November and now sometimes hit as many as two or three stores a night.
"It seems like they may have started out real slow, just testing the waters," he said.
The thieves use cargo vans or pickups stolen from homes, car lots and businesses and drive them to closed convenience stores in rural areas such as Cairo, Ga. They ram the vehicles into the stores, usually backwards, and crash into the ATM machines. If the collision breaks the machine free of the bolts that hold it to the floor, the thieves hop out, tip it into the back of the van or truck and drive away. If not, they tie a chain to the stolen vehicle and use it to pull the machine from its bolts.
They can be seen on surveillance tapes wearing masks, dark clothing and socks on their hands for gloves.
In one case, a stolen van they were using became stuck in the store. The men quickly climbed out and walked away. In another, the chain broke as they tried to pull an ATM out of a store. The thieves didn't even stop; they kept right on driving, Sauls said.
Detectives are reluctant to talk about how much money the group has gotten, but the damage to stores, vehicles and ATMs alone is well into the thousands. One store in Gadsden County suffered $15,000 in damage, including shattered windows, crumbled walls and broken water pipes. The cost of a destroyed Tallahassee ATM ran nearly $5,000.
