ATM thieves appear to be ever more desperate and dramatic. The latest heist, in Foros da Amora, Seixal, at 3.30am last Saturday, involved such a violent explosion that neighbouring homes had their windows blown in, while the fuel station where the ATM was located was reduced in parts to rubble.
Terrified residents woken by the blast – which involved the use of a gas bottle – told police they saw four men make off with the ATM’s box of money in a car, while wreckage was projected many metres both down and across the street.
“It was just a miracle that no one was badly hurt,” said witnesses.
Reporting on this latest incident in a wave of attacks on Multibanco machines, news services said that a similar explosion, also causing a lot of damage, took place in nearby Fernão Ferro in July, but in that case the thieves used a car battery as a detonator.
As yet no one has reported on how much money was taken.
