Police in East Peoria, Illinois say that an unidentified man used a stolen pickup truck to smash through the door and front window of a gas station and dislodge an ATM from the wall it was bolted to. He then hauled the machine to a parking lot where he attempted to withdraw cash by backing the truck into the ATM. He was not successful, and may have stolen another vehicle to leave the area.

No, really.

Although the ATM was badly damaged, it did not come open. The truck, a pickup with ladders on the sides, was stolen from C&G Concrete, 1906 Meadows Ave., police said.

Police responding to an alarm at the event center located the ATM and truck still running in the parking lot. The exterior brick wall was cracked. A hole was punched through the wall, and a large interior window was shattered, police said.

“There was an ATM with extensive damage behind the truck,” East Peoria Police Chief Ed Papis said. “The individual took the ATM machine from the truck, put it against the building and was backing into it to try to crack it open. It’s pretty well banged up.”

After the suspect gave up on getting to the money after a few minutes, police believe he apparently then stole a van from Spectacular Floor Care, 200 Sunrise Ave., located near the event center. The floor business reported the cargo van missing about 9 a.m.

This was probably a crime that seemed like a really, really good idea at the time.

Man slams stolen truck into Huck’s, ATM [Peoria Journal Star] (via Fark)

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