Balasore: A burglary bid by a gang at the State Bank of India ATM near Ranipatna Chhak here Tuesday night was foiled by the arrival of a patrolling team of the local police. Cops however could not catch the burglars.
The gang tampered with the ATM machine and almost broke it open, but the patrol vehicle doing the night rounds suddenly reached the spot. Time was about 2am and the streets were fully deserted. On fear of being nabbed, the miscreants fled the scene without taking any cash from the machine.
Two other SBI ATMs, in Sunhata and ITI Chhak in the town, had been broken open and money taken by gangs in a similar fashion earlier this month.
Involvement of an inter-state gang is suspected behind these incidents. Police said CCTV footage from the ATM kiosk will be collected to identify those involved in the ATM cash theft/attempt.
PNN