1. When they saw someone withdrawing money, the four men surrounded him/her. After the password was entered, the suspect pulled the woman and dragged her away by force. The woman who was withdrawing money was beaten by the suspect.
A group of bandits in Fujian were arrested after more than 10 consecutive crimes.
Eight bandits from Jiangxi province, waited beside secluded ATMs in Chengdong, Jiangnan and other areas of Quanzhou city in Fujian. After a customer finished entering their password, the bandits would push them down and beat them, then take their deposits.
In the period around this year's Spring Festival, they committed over 10 crimes and robbed more than 100,000 yuan. On the evening of February 10, more than ten armed police officers from Fengze Public Security Bureau took action and captured all of them.
Currently, the eight people are suspected of robbery and have all been criminally detained.
Scene replay: attacking a weak woman in broad daylight
At about 7 o'clock on the morning of January 10th, a woman walked to an ATM and inserted her bank card. At this time, four men surrounded her from different corners. The woman did not pay attention and continued her operation. After she finished entering her password, the four men pulled her away. The sudden event scared the woman, and she resisted, trying to push them away. But how could one person overcome these strong men?
These men pushed the woman to the ground. One or two of them started punching her and kicking her with great force. Meanwhile, another man operated the ATM and took the money from the woman's account.
This is the video footage shown by Fengze Public Security Bureau, which occurred at an ATM self-service area in Xunmei Industrial Zone in Chengdong, Fengze District.
It is reported that the whole process lasted only a few minutes, and the victim, Ms. Zeng, was robbed of 6,000 yuan. Besides the four men inside the self-service area, there were also four men outside waiting on motorcycles. After succeeding, the eight men quickly left.
Police investigation: This case was not the first one.
On the morning of January 8th at 7:50, at Pubei in Qiaotou Village, Anhai Town, Jinjiang, a customer, Mr. Chen, had his bank card snatched by four men while withdrawing money from an ATM, and 58,000 yuan was transferred from his account; On January 9th at around 7 o'clock, in front of an ATM on Nanhuang Road in Jincheng District, a customer, Mr. Xu, was forcibly pulled away by five or six men, his bank card was snatched, and 29,000 yuan was withdrawn from his account.
After receiving the alarm on January 10th, the Criminal Investigation Brigade of Fengze Public Security Bureau intervened in the investigation.
In the case that happened in Chengdong on January 10th, the license plates of the four motorcycles that were waiting for the criminals were not clear, making it difficult to track the suspects. After searching for similar cases throughout the city, the Criminal Investigation Brigade found through analysis that in the aforementioned cases, the ATMs were all located in relatively remote suburban areas, and the incidents generally occurred in the early morning or late at night when the customers were alone.
Over 10 crimes committed
The police discovered that all the cases were done by the same gang, with about 8 people involved. They were from Ruijin, Jiangxi, and had no fixed residence in Quanzhou.
On the evening of February 9th, at an ATM on Nanhuang Road, a victim had 30,900 yuan taken from his card by this gang.
On February 10th, the police arrested the eight suspects. According to the investigation, at around 7:30 PM that night, some of the men went to an ATM in Luojiang and stole 6,500 yuan from a customer’s bank card.
The eight criminal suspects, all in their 30s, mostly had prior convictions. Earlier, they used to steal money by switching victims' bank cards at ATMs. Later, they turned to violent robbery, targeting customers at some secluded ATMs.
After interrogation, the eight suspects confessed to a series of cases. So far, the gang has admitted to over 10 cases, involving more than 100,000 yuan. The police have already taken the suspects to the crime scenes for identification.
Precautions during withdrawals:
Unlawful individuals wait near ATMs or follow customers into bank self-service areas, then surround and rob them of their account deposits or cash withdrawals and transfers. Such cases are relatively rare in our city. For these cases targeting customers operating ATMs, the police remind the public to be vigilant.
The police suggest that citizens should choose busy streets and crowded times when withdrawing money via ATMs. When withdrawing large amounts of cash, it's best to go with at least one other person. Observe the surroundings carefully when withdrawing money. If someone taps you on the shoulder, remember to protect your bank card and money to prevent unlawful individuals from using fake bank cards or fake money to switch them. After withdrawing money, the withdrawer and accompanying persons can return together while maintaining some distance. Additionally, after withdrawing cash, do not place the money in a conspicuous place. (Quanzhou Evening News)