RCMP are searching for two suspects who crashed a truck through the doors of Bower Place mall and stole an ATM.
Police said they responded to a report of a break-in about 5:15 a.m. on Tuesday. It turned out a dark blue Ford pickup backed through the doors knocking over an ATM located inside the mall.
“The collision knocked the ATM off its base and two masked, gloved male suspects then placed the ATM in the truck and fled,” said police.
The truck, which had been reported stolen out of Blackfalds earlier in the morning, fled north on Bremner Avenue to 47th Avenue. It was later found abandoned in a parking lot near 31st Street and 47th Avenue.
ATMs have proven a tempting target for thieves.
In April 2017, a thief attempted to steal an ATM from a Boston Pizza in Innisfail.
Surveillance video showed a truck reversing into the doors, then a suspect running into the restaurant. He fled when he saw that the ATM was empty.
On the same day, two men tried unsuccessfully tried to steal an ATM from a Red Deer convenience store. They hooked a tow rope to the machine but it snapped.
The suspects abandoned the truck and fled on foot.
In December 2016 in Edmonton, a man used a front-end loader to steal a bank machine — the second such crime that week.
Officers responding to an alarm at a cash advance business saw the loader a few blocks away with the ATM in its bucket. Police followed it for five blocks before arresting a suspect.
In October 2016, thieves cut a hole in the roof of a Blackfalds gas station to steal an ATM.
The culprits then climbed down a tow rope to get inside the gas station store where they stole the ATM. They used a sledge hammer and crowbar to access the money machine, which was found just west of the gas station.
In May, 2016, Red Deer RCMP said two men used a stolen van to rip an ATM from a bank shortly before 4 a.m.
RCMP say the two men were caught on camera using a chain and a stolen van to pull the ATM free. Police found the van and the emptied ATM abandoned nearby, in a wooded area behind Lagrange Crescent.
Anyone with information on the most recent incident should contact Red Deer RCMP at 403-343-5575. To remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or report it online at www.tipsubmit.com. If your information leads to an arrest, you could be eligible for a cash reward up to $2,000.