String of raids on ATMs ‘are linked’
POLICE believe another raid on a village ATM could be linked to a similar attack in Stoney Stanton last month.
CCTV footage has been released by Derbyshire Constabulary showing a gang raiding a shop in Hatton, near Burton Upon Trent.
Vehicles used in the latest crime were later found dumped in Markfield.
The extended arm of a stolen digger was used to smash through a Nisa convenience store before the cash machine was loaded onto a trailer hooked up to a 4x4.
A police patrol vehicle reached the scene moments before the gang fled in the 4x4 and a second vehicle.
One of them threw a metal bar at an officer as they escaped.
The raid took place on August 3, and the machine, the trailer and the 4x4 were found in Markfield several days later.
In a statement, Derbyshire Constabulary said: “Officers were sent to the scene immediately and one thief threw a metal bar at officers before the vehicles drove off.
“We began searching for the gang, alerting neighbouring forces to the theft.
“The digger, which had been stolen from Tutbury, was left at the scene.
“The 4x4, trailer and cash machine were found abandoned in Markfield days later.”
The raid was the latest in a series of ATM thefts across the East Midlands in recent months.
Leicestershire Police said last month that it was working with neighbouring forces to try to establish whether similar raids across the region were linked.
Detective Inspector Gareth Goddard, of Leicestershire Police’s complex crime unit, also said people should consider it “unusual” to see such vehicles on the road outside regular working hours.
He said: “If you see plant machinery moving around early in the morning, tell us.
“It is unusual to see plant machinery moving around at those times of day. Tell us straight away and we will check it out.”
“We are also working with local businesses to make plant equipment more secure.”
Officers are able to offer advice to businesses which have ATMs on how they can reduce the risk of being targeted.
He suggested they could take measures such as placing strong bollards in front of buildings or moving freestanding machines away from their entrances.
Leicestershire Police is currently linking recent incidents county.
They are: June 5, the Co-op at the Green, in Thringstone.
On July 10, thieves used another stolen vehicle to crash into the Nationwide building society in Ashby.
The raid, captured on CCTV showed a Bobcat Telehandler being used to smash its way into the building a remove an ATM. three in the
The cash machine was loaded onto the back of a pick-up truck before the raiders made their escape.
The vehicles were found dumped on a dirt track in Nailstone week.
The Stoney Stanton branch of the Co-op was targeted at 3am on Thursday, July 27 when the sto- the following len machine was rammed into the shop and the ATM lifted out and loaded into another stolen vehicle.
Anyone with information is urged to call 101.