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Thieves rob Canadian bitcoin ATM. Forget to take most of the money

Thieves rob Canadian bitcoin ATM. Forget to take most of the moneySource: a video screenshot, Youtube, Castanet News


| by amyc@networldmediagroup.com, Amy Castor — Editor, Networld Media Group

Bitcoin kiosks can carry a lot of cash, which makes them as susceptible to robbery as any traditional ATM or bank vault. Clearly, that was what motivated two hoodlums in Canada earlier this week. 

Shortly after 4 a.m. Tuesday, a pair of masked thieves broke into a Simply Delicious Food Market in Vernon, British Columbia. They smashed the front windows, crawled in through the broken glass and made a beeline for the bitcoin machine, which they pried open with crowbars. 

In a matter of minutes, the pair made off with CA$4,000 ($3,000) cash stolen from the bitcoin kiosk, but left CA$50,000 ($37,600) in a separate canister still inside the machine, according to a report in Castanet.

Police pulled up 15 minutes after the alarm went off, but missed the thieves escaping. However, the two were not missed by the cameras set up all over the store.  

"Our security camera caught at least one of their cars drive away, which was a grey Nissan Sentra," store owner Troy Roland said in the report. "The police were also able to catch their license plate too."

Because of the robbery and collateral damage, Roland said that Simply Delicious won't keep the bitcoin ATM in the store anymore. 

According to Coin ATM Radar, the machine in question was a Genesis Coin bitcoin ATM operated by HoneyBadger. It was installed December 12, 2018. 

Watch the heist caught on camera:



Amy Castor

Amy Castor has more than 20 years of experience in journalism and mass communications. In the last several years, she has gotten particularly interested cryptocurrencies, blockchain technologies and other evolving forms of payment. Her work has appeared in consumer and trade publications throughout the U.S., including CoinDesk, Forbes, and Bitcoin Magazine. She is now the editor of ATMmarketplace.com and WorldofMoney.com

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