Construction Boom Leads to More ATM Machine Thefts

Criminal Justice

Construction Boom Leads to More ATM Machine Thefts

Posted Jun 27, 2008, 01:08 pm CDT
By Martha Neil

A construction boom has had an unexpected cost to banks in Florida and other high-growth areas. Thieves are stealing heavy equipment and using it to make away with ATM machines, apparently so they will have time to break into the machines and get the cash they contain, in a more secluded location.

"Thursday, for at least the sixth time in the past 18 months, thieves in South Florida borrowed heavy-duty construction equipment to rip a bank ATM from its moorings," reports the Miami Herald today. The latest heist, by at least two suspects using a forklift, was at a Bank of America branch in Miramar. Although an ATM machine was stolen, the thieves this time didn't get the cash before they abandoned it some 20 miles away.

To fight back, banks increasingly are paying an extra $1,000 to install "The Screamer" on ATM machines when they purchase them. It reportedly emits a high-pitched sound when the machine is tampered with that even thieves wearing earplugs can't stand.

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