HEWITT, Texas — Authorities now believe ATM thefts across Texas could be tied to a larger group out of the DFW area.
The latest ATM was stolen in Hewitt on Oct. 26.
A viral video shows multiple men backing a truck up to a convenience store at a gas station and pulling the ATM through the front window.
"The three subjects loaded up the ATM into the back of their pick-up truck, took the truck to Waco and broke into the ATM at that location," Chief of Hewitt Police John McGrath said.
This is the latest of multiple ATM thefts in Central Texas.
In the past two months there have been two ATM thefts in Temple, one in Waco and one in Killeen.
McGrath believes the Temple and Hewitt incidents are connected and those men might be part of the larger group out of DFW.
The thefts all seem to be similar in nature he added.
Trucks pull up to a convenience store, a few men break the front window, tie a rope around the ATM and pull it out into the bed of the truck.
They then take the truck to separate location where they break-in to the ATM, load everything into a separate car and flee.
"We're currently working with other agencies in this investigation."
McGrath asks stores to start placing their ATM at the back of their stores so they're not as easy to access.
Contact police if you know anything or see anything suspicious.
Statement from the Temple Police Department:
The August 25th ATM Theft occurred at the 7-Eleven on N 3rd Street, and the September 28th ATM theft occurred at the 7-Eleven on the 4100 block of S. 31st Street. Temple PD does have active ongoing investigations into both of these incidents.
Statement regarding specific concerns: “The City of Temple has had two incidents of ATM thefts, but there have been a number of ATM thefts throughout the Central Texas area. Temple PD is working with other departments in the area to determine if all the incidents are related to and being committed by the same criminal element or if there are different groups involved in these cases. As a department, we are continuing to monitor the situation diligently and working to identify the offenders involved in these thefts,” Megan Price, City of Temple Public Relations Coordinator.
Statement regarding what Temple PD would like the public to know: “The public should remain vigilant of their surroundings at all times. If you see anything suspicious or activity that seems out of the ordinary, please report it to local police,” Megan Price, City of Temple Public Relations Coordinator.
It is not know whether Waco or Killeen are not part of this investigation right now.
Six News will continue to follow this investigation and will have more information as it becomes available.