Bhopal ATM Theft: Interstate Gang Busted For Targeting 22 ATMs, Stealing Nearly ₹20 Lakh; Mastermind BTech Student Arrested

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Shahpura police on Tuesday busted an interstate gang allegedly involved in stealing cash from ATMs by tampering with the cash dispenser shutter. Six suspects including the alleged mastermind, a final-year BTech student, have been arrested.

Police seized Rs 50,000 in cash and the car allegedly used in the crimes, while the bank accounts of all the suspects have been frozen for further investigation.

Police officials said the alleged gang leader, Sonu alias Vipul is a native of Bihar and was pursuing the final year of Computer Science Engineering at a reputed university.

During his studies, he allegedly conspired with his associate Prince Gupta, to commit the ATM fraud. They later called four more associates from Bihar and allegedly began carrying out the crimes in an organised manner.

The arrested suspects have been identified as Sonu alias Vipul, Prince Gupta, Saket Khetan, Sahil Ali, Asif Alam and Mohammad Sagir.

Shahpura police station incharge Santosh Makram said the suspects admitted targeting 22 ATMs in Shahpura, Kolar and Ashoka Garden areas.

Police said nearly Rs 20 lakh was stolen within a month. Transaction records have been sought from the bank to determine the total amount withdrawn.

Modus operandi

The gang allegedly targeted ATMs in the early morning hours. Using a master key, they allegedly tampered with the ATM shutter and cash dispenser by installing a thin metal strip and other devices that caused dispensed cash to get trapped inside the machine instead of being delivered to customers.

Gang members allegedly kept watch from a distance. When a customer completed a transaction but failed to receive cash, one of the suspects would approach the customer and claim that the ATM had run out of cash.

After the customer left, the gang would reopen the shutter and take the trapped currency.

Police said the technique was different from card cloning or skimming as it involved physical tampering with the ATM's cash dispensing mechanism. The tampering caused damage to the cash dispensers of several ATMs.