Lokmat News Network
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar
In a swift operation, two thieves from Mumbai were arrested by Cidco Police on Thursday morning for attempting to loot an ATM in the city.
The accused, Mukiya Khan Feku Khan (42, Uttar Pradesh), and Prashant Mahakal Shetty (40, Mumbai), were caught tampering with the ATM and trying to steal money.
The shocking incident occurred at 8.30 am at an ATM centre near Baliram Patil School on N-7 on Thursday. The e-surveillance team from EPS, monitoring the ATM, spotted the two men fiddling with the cash dispenser. Acting promptly, the team alerted the ATM manager, Abhijit Nikumbh, who contacted the police. Upon arriving at the scene, the officers discovered the thieves had placed a strip inside the machine, blocking the money dispensing slot.
A customer, Rajaram Chavan, arrived to withdraw money, but his 1,000 rupees got stuck due to the strip. As he left, unaware of the trap, the thieves moved in to extract the trapped cash. But their plan backfired when police, led by PSI Pramod Devkate, arrested them on the spot.
Police suspect the duo are seasoned criminals with a history of similar offences. The pair had arrived in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar from Mumbai earlier that morning, but it is yet unclear how much money they successfully managed to steal.
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The Robbery Method
The thieves’ method was simple yet effective. Placing a strip in the cash dispensing slot, caused the money to get stuck while the transaction appeared as successful on the cardholder's account. Believing the machine malfunctioned, the cardholders would leave, leaving the thieves free to retrieve the trapped cash. Mukiya and Prashant had been using this tactic to steal from unsuspecting customers.
(WITH PHOTO)