Police are investigating an ATM raid in an Aberdeenshire village – just months after £10,000 was stolen from a nearby shop.
Residents of Alford yesterday called for more CCTV in the village after the latest incident, which happened at the Co-op on Mart Road.
The culprits fled empty handed, but badly damaged the cash machine as they tried to force it open.
A delivery driver raised the alarm after spotting the Cashzone ATM at about 6.40am yesterday.
Police cordoned off the scene for nearly six hours as forensic experts examined the scene and dusted for fingerprints.
Last night, Detective Inspector Norman Stevenson described it as a “crude attempt” to get into the cash machine, but admitted his team had not yet been able to work out what equipment the would-be thieves had used.
He said: “We don’t yet know exactly how they have done it. You can see they have pretty much just broke apart the front and hauled it off and exposed some wiring and other bits and pieces. It was absolutely unsuccessful.
“Thankfully they got no where near any parts that have money in the machine. There is a lot of damage obviously and it will be costly to repair for the company.”
Earlier this year, three men were jailed for a string of ATM thefts across the north-east, including New Deer, Ellon, Stonehaven, Inverurie and Bieldside. They stole about £130,000 over a two-month period by blowing up the machines in 2015.
DI Stevenson said he did not believe the latest incident was linked, but stressed officers were keeping an open mind.
“I don’t think it’s linked to the few that have occurred, but obviously I am aware of those previous incidents and who is involved and we’ll be looking closely at that,” he added.
He said officers would be reviewing the cash machine’s logs to try and pinpoint when it was singled out by the culprits.
However, he said the spot where the cash machine stands is not covered by CCTV – prompting calls from local residents for better coverage outside the Co-op.
Alan Folley, who lives near the shop, said it had been broken into before, along with a number of properties on Fraser Road.
The 54-year-old added: “Across the road was broken into, and even the corner house has been broken into a few times. It feels as though it is getting more regular.
“I never heard anything. I didn’t think it was a shock – I think it is a shock they have not actually protected the Co-op.
“I would have thought they’d put CCTV so at least so you can see vehicles coming in and out.”
Retired carpenter Alasdair Durno added: “I’m not surprised as the Co-op has been broken into a few times. It does worry me now, I put an extra lock on my shed because I have got all my garden tools and stuff in there.”
A Co-op spokeswoman said as the ATM belonged to Cashzone, the firm would not be commenting.
A Cashzone spokesman said: “As this is an ongoing police investigation we are unfortunately not able to give you any more information at this stage.”
During the Alford KeyStore robbery in April, thieves smashed the glass door and made off with more than £10,000 in cash and about £1,000 worth of cigarettes.
