HYDERABAD: Unidentified miscreants attempted to loot an unmanned SBI ATM at Mailardevpally of Cyberabad on Monday night.
In the process, a fire broke out in the ATM booth, damaging the machine, and the miscreants fled, fearing the fire.
The fire is suspected to have been triggered by a short circuit, but no cash was stolen from the machine, said police. Police officials also termed the rumours false that the suspects set the machine on fire after failing to loot it.
According to police, the incident happened on Saturday at around 3.30 am. The miscreants, who are yet to be identified, entered the ATM booth and snapped the CCTV cables. In the process, a fire broke out in the booth, and the ATM machine was also caught in the fire.
The suspects immediately fled from the spot, leaving the booth on fire. Alerted by passersby and bank staff, police, along with fire personnel, rushed to the spot and doused the fire.
The machine and the booth were damaged in the fire, but the cash in the machine was intact.
“Bank authorities said that Rs 7.06 lakh cash was in the machine and it was intact even after the fire. No portion of the cash was damaged in the incident,” said a Mailardevpally police official, adding that an attempt to theft case was registered and special teams have been deputed to nab the suspects.
Key highlights:
- Unidentified miscreants tried to loot an unmanned SBI ATM in Mailardevpally, Cyberabad, but fled after a fire broke out.
- Police suspect the fire was caused by a short circuit, dismissing rumors that the suspects set it intentionally.
- Despite the fire damaging the ATM booth and machine, the ?7.06 lakh inside remained untouched.
- A case of attempted theft has been registered, and special teams are working to identify and apprehend the suspects.
