News

Suspect in murder of ATM service tech turns himself in

April 27, 2004

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - The suspected killer of ATM service tech Milton Moran Jr. was arrested on April 26 in Coral Springs, Fla., on a murder complaint filed in White Plains, said U.S. Attorney David Kelley.

The suspect, Paul Douglas, 31, of Brooklyn, was jailed while awaiting his return to White Plains, according to the Associated Press.

According to a New York Post report, Douglas surrendered to authorities in Florida after confessing the murder to a Coral Springs clergyman. He turned himself in just hours after Moran's funeral in New York.

Police believe Moran, whose body was found in the trunk of his car, was killed by Douglas, a former co-worker who was trying to steal cash from an ATM the victim was servicing.

Moran, 29, was found dead and bound with duct tape April 22 in the trunk of his Toyota outside a Citibank branch in Yonkers, where he had just repaired an ATM. He had been beaten and suffocated, and some of the keys for ATMs on his route apparently were missing, according to the AP.

The federal complaint alleges that Douglas killed Moran "in attempting to take money from the Citibank ATM machine by force."

The complaint said that until 2002, Douglas also worked as an ATM technician for the Brinks security firm. Brinks personnel said Douglas knew how technicians got to the cash in ATMs. According to the complaint, after Douglas left Brinks, two ATMs that had been on his route were burglarized in an apparent "inside job."

In Yonkers, a witness called police after seeing a body being dragged from a dark sport utility vehicle to Moran's car. The witness reported seeing a human foot hanging out of the Toyota's trunk.

A second witness had taken down the license plate number of a car matching that SUV's description, and the number was traced to a black Lexus used by Douglas and registered to a woman with whom he lives, according to the APreport.

Douglas could face the death penalty.

Security