Wrecking raiders leave cash machine just a hole in a wall

Thieves broke into taxi office to steal ATM’S cash but it is unclear if they got away with any

Police are investigating a brazen raid on a cash machine in Kirkcaldy.

Part of the ATM was wrenched from a wall in Pentland Place in the early hours of Thursday.

However, the heist may have failed as it is yet to be established whether any money was stolen.

The alarm was raised shortly after 4am and officers rushed to the scene, in a row of shop units in a residential area.

The damaged cash machine is in the wall of the Treble Twenty Taxi office, and taxi operator John Laidlaw said the raiders had broken into the premises to try to access it from inside.

However, he said it appeared their plan was thwarted when they found it enclosed in reinforced steel and they attempted to take it from the outside instead.

He said: “We got a phone call at 5am. The ATM is badly damaged. The screen was lying on the ground when we went to let to police in.

“There’s a hole in the wall where the machine used to be.

“I have no idea how they got it out. It would have been a serious effort.

“A neighbour across the road said she hadn’t heard a thing.”

The area was sealed off as detectives examined the crime scene, near a beauty salon and grocer’s shop, yesterday.

A neighbour said: “I saw the police at about 7.30am and thought the shop had been robbed.

“People said the cash machine alarm had been going off.”

Another neighbour said: “This is a quiet street. We’ve never had anything like this happen.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Police in Fife were called to a business premise on Pentland Place, Kirkcaldy, at around 4.10am on Thursday September 14 following reports of damage to an ATM.

“Inquiries are ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact Kirkcaldy CID on 101, quoting incident reference 0374 of September 14.”

“The screen was lying on the ground when we went to let to police in. I have no idea how they got it out. It would have been a serious effort

Pictures: Steve Macdougall. Left: police at the scene in Pentland Place, Kirkcaldy, with the smashed-up cash machine in the background. Right: the remains of the ATM, though it is not yet certain the thieves got away with any cash.