Thaindian News

November 10, 2010 (Pen Men at Work): The law enforcement authority personnel have been surprised to see a napkin serve as a tool for robbing ATMs. The San Francisco police have arrested the con man since then. The police discovered that the man had been tampering with the ATMs near his area of residence by stuffing them with napkins. The slots which were used to release cash were the ones targeted by the thief. The police also happened to find a nearby ATM stuffed with napkins when they arrested the man and led him away.

The idea behind the slot being filled with napkins is rather ingenuous. Persons who required money operated the ATM machine the usual way. The cash, however, got trapped in the napkin and could not come out of the machine. Most of the people got frustrated and simply walked out thinking that it was case of a malfunctioning ATM. The thief who bided his time, in the meanwhile, then proceeded to enter the ATM room and pull out the napkins along with the cash trapped within it.

Most banks have now issued a warning to its customers asking them to use the same ATM as much as possible. Utilizing the same machine over a period of time is likely to make people notice discrepancies, minor in nature, which could be overlooked otherwise. Reaching your hand into the slot will help you recover your money if it gets stuck for any reason. The best way to ask for help is of course to call up the 800 number on your ATM card.