Dear Roy,
This is the dramatic scene that greeted our officers this morning after a 5am ram raid at the BP garage on Wisbech Road, Littleport.
We arrived on scene 12 minutes later to discover the ATM was missing from the store, though the telehandler used was left at the scene.
Officers searched the area to no avail and an investigation has been launched.
Anyone with any information, including dash cam or video doorbell footage, is urged to contact us online here quoting incident 52 of 6 November, or Op ATMosphere. Anyone without internet access is urged to call 101.
‘We need the public’s help’
Detective Chief Inspector Chris O’Brien said: “Ram-raids are likely to take place between September and January when the nights are darker.
“Our patrols have increased across the county. We are committed to making it harder for ATM thieves to target our local shops and ATM machines and will be targeting areas we believe are at increased risk – but we can’t do it alone.
“We need the public’s help to report anything suspicious or anything they see that might not seem quite right, no matter how small or insignificant it may seem. One call could make all the difference and potentially stop a store or petrol station being targeted.”
You can help us by:
- Ensuring your vehicles have working trackers installed – particularly owners of high-performance cars, ‘heavy vehicles’ such as transits and flat beds which could be used to ram an ATM and plant
- Consider installing video doorbells or CCTV
- Report anything suspicious, for example people scoping houses or tampering with number plates
- Report any instances of people appearing to be paying attention to ATM machines, including taking photos or unauthorised people attaching ‘out of order’ signs to give an impression the machine is not working properly
- Raise concerns about anything that doesn’t feel quite right involving high performance cars, ‘heavy vehicles’ or plant travelling in the vicinity towns and villages during the hours of darkness
- Report high-performance or ‘heavy’ vehicles that are not usually in the area and appear to have been left parked for a few days.
