Criminal elements are plundering vast sums from Automated Telling Machines (ATMs) across Europe. Germany, in particular, is attracting their attention.
Criminals blew up an ATM positioned beneath a housing complex in the city center.
The explosion resulted in severe destruction to the building, causing its occupants to evacuate. As per local news reports, individuals wearing dark clothing boosted away in a black vehicle heading towards a nearby freeway, according to eyewitnesses.
Thieves made off with 130,000 euros in cash during the heist. They also inflicted an estimated 500,000 euros in collateral damage, according to a BKA report.
In recent years, European criminal organizations have opted for targeting ATMs as an easier and less flashy alternative to staging bank heists.
In Germany, the country with the largest economy in Europe, thieves have been detonating ATMs at a rate dispersed over multiple days. This crime can be enormously profitable due to the prevalence of cash as a payment method in the country, with criminals often pocketing several hundred thousand euros from a single attack.
Europol has been cracking down on these crimes by executing extensive cross-border operations aiming to dismantle the highly-organized criminal organizations orchestrating the ATM attacks.
In early November, authorities from Germany, France, and the Netherlands apprehended three individuals belonging to a criminal network dismantling ATMs using explosives, as stated by Europol.
Europol reported that since 2022, these detainees had stolen millions of euros and caused almost the same amount in damage to property, between the years of 2022 and 2024.
This criminal network used properties in France as their hideaways and rented high-powered getaway vehicles from a French rental firm, as mentioned in the statement.
The arrests were a part of a broader operation by authorities from Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Law enforcement officials also searched car rental companies whose vehicles were used during the escape from crime scenes in a multi-country "action day" operation.
According to Europol, the perpetrators mostly use strong explosives, often derived from fireworks, to detonate the money-filled machines, causing significant structural damage. In Germany alone, secondary damages amounted to 28.4 million euros due to ATM lootings in 2023, according to the BKA.
These gangs – often based in the Netherlands – take immense risks and act ruthlessly, both during the heists and their escape in powerful vehicles.
The chosen ATMs are typically located in quieter residential areas, making them easier targets. Europol warns that these attacks pose a severe risk to both buildings and residents. The attacks can cause damage to building facades and scatter fragments of glass.
In some circumstances, these attacks can even result in fatalities.
On November 11, an ATM burglary in Wiernsheim, a German town in the state of Baden Württemberg, turned disastrous. Following the theft of 40,000 euros in cash, a Dutch criminal trio attempted a high-speed getaway in a VW Golf with stolen license plates, according to local media reports. Pursued by law enforcement, they drove the wrong way on the A6 motorway.
Two of the three criminals were captured at a rest stop, but the 30-year-old Dutch driver managed to flee and continued to drive against traffic at speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour, until colliding head-on with a van.
The driver and passenger in the truck were both critically injured, with the passenger dying in hospital several days later. The driver, who suffered severe injuries, was apprehended and later received a life sentence.
A Rising Trend
Germany is currently experiencing a surge in ATM bombings. Given its popularity of cash-based transactions, it's easy to understand why.
The country hosts more than 51,000 ATMs, a higher number compared to its neighboring Dutch with around 5,000. Majority of the 83.3 million German citizens only need to walk up to 1 kilometer to access their nearest ATM, stated the central bank, Bundesbank.
Unlike its European counterparts who made significant transitions to digital payments due to the pandemic, Germany remains heavily reliant on cash as a method of payment. Over half of all transactions in 2023 were cash-based, according to the Bundesbank.
Germans have a cultural fondness for cash, commonly viewing it as a secure means of payment. Some attribute this preference to its ability to offer greater privacy and control over expenses.
A 2016 study by the Bundesbank discovered that cash was more prominent among older German generations, potentially due to lingering memories of the country's tumultuous recent past that affected its reluctance to embrace digital payment methods.
In Bundesbank's 2022 post-pandemic press statement, Johannes Beermann stated: "Neither digitalization nor the pandemic have been able to replace cash. Cash remains by far the most favored payment method in Germany."
Germany's geographical location, with proximity to the Netherlands and motorways with deregulated speed limits, makes it an appealing target for cross-border criminal activities.
The decline in ATM machines in the Netherlands as well as enhanced security measures to combat crime, such as the installation of glue protection systems to render banknotes useless, has also led Dutch criminals to seek out alternative opportunities, according to Reuters, citing Dutch police.
A 2023 BKA report reveals that ATM robberies in Germany have been on the rise since 2005, with the number dropping moderately in 2022 and 2023. However, Germany recorded a total of 461 ATM robberies in 2023 – the second-highest number since surveys began in 2005.
The study revealed that, much like in past years, there was a decrease in thefts during the summer of 2023. This decrease is likely due to the extended daylight hours, increasing the chances of being caught. Majority of these crimes occurred on weekdays, specifically between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m., as reported by the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA).
Representing Germany's banking sector, a representative from the German Banking Industry Committee informed CNN: "Germany boasts one of Europe's largest ATM networks... This extensive network has attracted the attention of international criminal organizations. They find the concentration of ATMs and Germany's demand for cash access appealing."
German banks have invested over 300 million euros in security enhancements, including installing alarm systems, employing ink staining solutions, reinforcing lock mechanisms, and deploying fogging technology. However, techniques such as using glue to neutralize stolen cash are currently prohibited in Germany.
The spokesperson announced that these measures, coupled with enhanced collaboration with law enforcement, have significantly decreased ATM attacks. The Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) reported that 2024 figures are already "significantly below" those of the previous year.
In July, the German government announced stricter penalties for ATM thefts. Convicted thieves now face a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison, an increase from the previous one-year minimum. If the health of an innocent individual or individuals is harmed, the perpetrators will serve prison sentences ranging from five to fifteen years, compared to the previous mandatory minimum of two years.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser stated, "Those who bomb ATMs put innocent people's lives at risk." She further explained, "We are dealing with criminals with no regard for human life and handling highly dangerous explosives. Therefore, these actions should be punished more severely."
The surge in ATM bombings in Germany makes Europe a concern for law enforcement, given its easy access to cash and proximity to countries with diminishing ATMs and enhanced security measures.
The EU has noted an increase in ATM robberies across its member states, with Germany recording the second-highest number since surveys began in 2005.
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