Battered Phuket ATM refuses to yield to robbers

[GTO1969]

That's what I look like after a week in Phuket!

[KarenBravo]

I was told years ago that some USA based ATMs can hold up to 80,000. USD

How much can they hold in Thai baht here? I'd think the value would be much higher.

800,000 Bt.

You would be wrong.

[louse1953]

<snip>

Wonder why they did not pick it up and take it away rather than try and cut into the safe on site ?

Hard to get it on the back of their motor bike.

Being more serious, they must have had a larger vehicle to drag it out of the wall ??

Well, the first sentence said they used a pick-up truck. Is that large enough?

i would be checking the local hospitals for 2 blokes with hernias and f..... backs!!!

[louse1953]

Funny robbers.

More like "incompetent"

Why not build a winch into the back of the pickup, carry a couple of strong planks of wood and drag the thing aboard?

I should start giving thieving lessons...

(Maybe that's another occupation reserved for Thais )

Why not steal a car wreck ute/truck,ready made for the job.

[louse1953]

Thailand rarely bolts them to the ground.

The ones in the malls could just be wheeled out on a trolley if you're game enough to try.

I was checking a machine if it had a skimmer attached to the card slot

and how would you be able to tell? what you looking for?

Read my post.

I check every atm for skimming devices before using one.

Does that ease your suspicion?

Same as me Hans,i scratch and claw before putting the card in.

[louse1953]

The police said an arc welder was probably used....I suggest the police learn what an arc welder is.An arc welder is a device to weld together 2 metals If the thieves were trying to open the safe with an arc welder there were as incompetant as the police because all they would have suceeded in doing was welding it shut

Have you ever used an arc welder? If you crank the amerage up enough you can cut metal with one. All you have to do is keep the rod a little further away from the metal than you would while welding the metal together.

Too true,but i manage to get plenty of holes.Wonder where they got the power supply and why it didn't trip.They wouldn't have wired straight to the meter would they,Thai style?It's what i do.

[louse1953]

I was told years ago that some USA based ATMs can hold up to 80,000. USD

How much can they hold in Thai baht here? I'd think the value would be much higher.

If one bothered to read the article they may have noticed a figure of 3.5 million baht suggested.... whats that, about $110.000 USD ?

Wonder why they did not pick it up and take it away rather than try and cut into the safe on site ?

In the UK the thieves steal a JCB digger and then dig the ATM out and straight into a truck - open later at leisure. We had two ATMs stolen last week in Manchester with this method.

QUIET! (There's a load of Thais now trying to find out what the h*ll a "JCB" is... )

They know already,plenty here.

[wolfmanjack]

The police said an arc welder was probably used....I suggest the police learn what an arc welder is.An arc welder is a device to weld together 2 metals If the thieves were trying to open the safe with an arc welder there were as incompetant as the police because all they would have suceeded in doing was welding it shut

Have you ever used an arc welder? If you crank the amerage up enough you can cut metal with one. All you have to do is keep the rod a little further away from the metal than you would while welding the metal together.

Too true,but i manage to get plenty of holes.Wonder where they got the power supply and why it didn't trip.They wouldn't have wired straight to the meter would they,Thai style?It's what i do.

Yep shoving the wires in the meter is the best way to hook up an arc welder without tripping the breakers and I imagine that is what they did. I have seen several thais with their arc welders hooked up that way so it would be easy for these guys to figure it out.