WHILE police have arrested a man in connection the theft of an ATM in Irvinestown earlier this year, they have warned the public to be on alert for further cash machine thefts over Christmas.
A 26-year-old man was arrested last week following police searches in Omagh and Seskinore, during which a number of items were seized.
He was taken to Omagh Police Station for questioning in relation to the theft in Irvinestown back in March, as well as previous ATM thefts in Omagh and Fintona.
Det Supt Rowan Moore said despite progress being made in their investigations, police would not become complacent.
“ATM thefts cause loss and devastation, both to the business owners and to the local communities, many of whom are rural and depend on their local ATM provision for access to cash,” he said.
“During our investigation we have seen the positive result of the community and police working together to catch those we believe are responsible for the theft of ATMS.
“However, we are not complacent and we continue to focus on doing everything we can to catch those responsible for previous incidents and prevent further thefts.”
Det Supt Moore continued: “In the run up to the busy festive period, more people will be visiting ATMs and I would encourage the public to let us know if they see anything suspicious.
“Construction work is also likely to come to a halt over the holidays and I would encourage those who own or use heavy plant machinery to be mindful of the risk and take every possible step to secure and immobilise machinery. If criminals cannot steal diggers, they cannot tear out ATMs. This will also mean that these expensive pieces of machinery are not destroyed or burnt out.”
Det Supt Moore said teams of police detectives would continue investigating the ATM thefts, and urged the community to report any unusual or suspicious activity, particularly if they see anyone loitering close to ATMs when a shop is closed, or if they hear machinery moving in the middle of the night.
Police on high alert for further ATM raids
Posted: 12:58 pm December 22, 2019
Posted: 12:58 pm December 22, 2019