Thefts on ATM are on the rise, especially in the greater Houston area. Just recently, three people were after an ATM theft in downtown Houston. The incident is believed to be connected to a rash of similar thefts that have happened over the past couple of months.
Deputy constables watched as a stolen Ford F-250 truck was driven into the front of the Harris County Administration Building on Preston Street in downtown Houston. Deputies chased the truck, which eventually crashed near the intersection of Main Street and Interstate 10.
Investigators believe the group may be responsible for a rash of ATM thefts in the Pasadena area, during which stolen vehicles were driven into other county buildings and businesses.
The three were identified and were charged with engaging in organized criminal activity and evading arrest. Investigators said they are still looking for two or three people believed connected to the ring.
In a similar incident involving ATM theft, police arrested two men who were accused of trying to steal an ATM, using a front-end loader at a southeast Houston bank.
The failed smash-and-grab follows two similar incidents this year in which people were accused of using forklifts to steal ATMs. In one of the cases, two men were also arrested. The other case didn’t yield an immediate arrest.
Police received a call around 2 a.m. about a stolen truck, which the owner tracked to the Texan Bank on the Gulf Freeway near Beltway 8. The truck owner went to the bank and saw two men using his car and a stolen front-end loader to smash and steal a drive-up ATM. The alarm company also called the police once the ATM was being stolen.
Houston police arrived, and the two men fled from police during a short car chase. After they hit a fence nearby, the driver was taken into custody, and the passenger fled, only to be found later by a K-9 unit. He is also in custody.
No money was taken from the bank, but the ATM was damaged.
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