Thieves Botch ATM Robbery AndGetaway

PITTSBORO, N.C. - (09/16/04) -- An ATM that was pulled from the wallat a State Employees CU branch, along with a front-end loader usedfor the task, was abandoned early Sunday morning after theattempted theft set off the alarm. The thieves had transported thefront-end loader on a 16-foot trailer that was also abandoned atthe site, then wrapped a chain around the ATM and yanked it off ofits foundation. But when the alarm sounded the ill-fated thievesfled in a Ford pickup truck, which, with headlights off, they raninto a pond a little way down the road. Police hope to trace thebandits from the truck, which they believe belongs to one ofthem.