Police departments across southern Ontario are asking business owners to consider whether they really need an ATM in their stores. This as the province has experienced an orgy of crash and yank ATM thefts that’s running at 58 since January of 2017. The pattern of overnight attacks by thieves in a stolen vehicle, usually a pickup truck, is familiar to cops. They have occurred at businesses in Brant, Waterloo, Hamilton, Owen Sound and Niagara, OPP. “These guys are driving these trucks right into these businesses, right through the windows — plate glass windows and doors — and it’s not hard to break glass with a truck,” said OPP Sergeant Dave Rektor. “Everybody has these machines with lots of money in them and they’re easy targets for thieves,” he said. Damage to a single building ranges from $20,000 to $250,000 and in some cases has left it structurally unsound. The loss of the ATM averages about $10,000, plus repair costs and loss of revenue while the store is closed, police said, while the average profit from an ATM is approximately 20 cents for every $20 dispensed.
