Looters target ATMs in Germany

International

AUTOMATED Teller Machines (ATMs) are now the targets of organized groups of criminals in Europe to loot for sums of money, as this is more convenient for them than staging dramatic robberies at the banks.

Robbers favor quieter residential areas where ATMS are located as these are easy targets to steal.

In years, countries in Europe like Germany, where cash is still the main method of payment, card-skimming attacks are prevalent among thieves to purloin large amounts of cash in one attack.

Just last year, ATMs were blown up by looters in the German towns of Bad Homburg and Kronberg, causing shattered glass and heavy damage to the building. Thieves were able to take €165,000 ($177 956) and 130,000 euros in cash ($140, 204), respectively.

This smash-and-grab operation by looters has been the subject of intense monitoring by the Federal Criminal Police Office of Germany since 2005, with operations being conducted across the border.

According to the Insurance Journal, the number of this kind of crime has increased over the years, especially in Germany where it happens more than once a day in some of its towns, usually occurring at night. The interior ministry recorded an increase of 40% since 2019 of the said attacks, it added.

Just this month, three members of a criminal group were arrested by authorities from France, the Netherlands, and Germany for blowing up ATMs. These looters were reportedly able to rob millions of euros.

German Banking Industry Committee spokesperson said Germany still has the most extensive ATMs in Europe with its demand for cash access which becomes the factor on why organized criminal groups in the country are tempted to do such card-skimming attacks, a report by CNN stated.

These crimes pushed German banks to invest over 300 million euros in enhancing their security like “fogging technology, alarm systems, ink staining solutions, and reinforced locking mechanisms.”(LAO)