Cashpoint stolen from Home Bargains at Harwich retail park in ram-raid

Ram raiders ripped out a cash point from a retail park store using a JCB digger, which they then abandoned at the scene.

Two vehicles removed the ATM at the front of the Home Bargains store at the Harwich Gateway Retail Park in the early hours of Monday, said Essex Police.

Both vehicles were found abandoned nearby after police were called at 2am.

Police are appealing for witnesses as they investigate the theft.

Ram-raiders also struck in Tilbury on 3 January, but police they are not yet linking the two incidents.

Ram-raids have been a persistent problem for police forces in East Anglia with three such raids in Cambridgeshire alone in the space of three months in late 2023.

On 13 October, raiders targeted a corner shop in Bassingbourn. This was followed by incidents at Whittlesey and Soham.

Two further attempts were made to steal cash points in Linton and St Neots.

The raids, which were formally linked, forced the police to put out more patrols and launch a community initiative to 'adopt' a cash machine - designed to get local businesses and houses to form "all-seeing, all-hearing protective bubbles" around ATMs.

In March, South Cambridgeshire District Council cabinet approved plans for up to £100,000 to be spent on boosting protection for some of the ATMs in the area with heavy-duty planters.

At the time, Bill Handley, South Cambridgeshire District Council’s lead cabinet member for communities, said: "Ram-raiding ATMs isn't just about stealing money; it's a destructive act that disrupts daily life and undermines our sense of security."

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