An attempt to break into an ATM belonging to Federal Bank, on Pattimattom Road in Kizhakkambalam town, was reported on Friday.
The attempt, which was made at 3.05 a.m., was detected 25 minutes later by those manning the round-the-clock control room of the bank, who accessed the footage from the CCTV mounted inside the ATM counter.
The footage shows a man with his face fully covered and clad in a jeans and T-shirt, tinkering with the ATM machine.
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“The man who appears to be in his 30s put up two flex boards before the ATM entry as a cover for his act. Though he was able to break the front door of the ATM compartment, he could not go beyond that and fled immediately,” said V.T. Shajan, Station House Officer, Kunnathunadu.
The control room authorities located at Infopark initially received live footage of a man moving with a flex board and thought it was an innocuous act by someone engaged in publicity work. Also, they lost network connectivity at that moment. By the time connectivity was restored, the attempt was already over, which they saw by playing the downloaded footage.
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“We were alerted around 3.45 a.m. and immediately a police patrolling team, which was in the vicinity, reached the spot. In fact, the patrolling team had signed the logbook kept at the same ATM just an hour before the attempt,” said Mr. Shajan.
A dog squad and fingerprint experts are expected to examine the crime scene shortly. Police are awaiting the arrival of Federal Bank authorities to garner how much cash was in the ATM. Efforts are also on to collect CCTV footage from nearby shops, establishments and houses.
“A case will shortly be registered invoking IPC Section 380 (theft in dwelling house etc) 461 (dishonestly breaking open receptacle containing property),” said Mr. Shajan.