IAD Recovers $25,000 with DPL’s Anti-Theft Accessory

Early in 2018 Darryl and Kristy Staal, owner/operators of Kida ATM Services, were the victims of an ATM smash and grab. Located in Thunder Bay Ontario, Darryl and Kristy manage over 100 ATMs. During the incident, thieves smashed out a window to gain entry to the building, then ripped the ATM out, causing a lot of collateral damage in the process. The theft was caught on camera, however police were unable to recover the ATM or catch those responsible, resulting in a total loss.

Feeling frustrated Darryl and Kristy didn’t know what to do besides cut their losses and move on. In April of 2018 Darryl traveled to Toronto to attend an ATMIA trade show, which included a presentation by DPL about their Protector GPS accessory, an intrusion detection and theft recovery accessory that works in conjunction with their Hercules wireless ATM modem. The Protector GPS features custom physical sensors that can send multi recipient alerts via text, telephone call, email and in the mobile friendly Hercules Portal for; power cuts, tilting/vibration, door open events, and GPS movement.

Darryl and Kristy decided to purchase some Protector GPS accessories and installed them in locations they believed may be at higher risk of a theft. Early one morning in September of 2018, at around 1:00 a.m., Darryl received a text alert indicating that a power cut alarm had been detected at one of his ATMs. Moments later he received a second text alert indicating that a tilt alarm had also been detected. This prompted a third text alert indicating a potential theft in progress.

Darryl immediately logged into DPLs Hercules Portal on his mobile device and viewed the security tab of the ATM he’d received the alerts for. There he could see the ATMs GPS position moving away from its location in real time. This ATM had been located at a busy weekend market, and Darryl had just loaded it with cash the day before.

Darryl and Kristy called 911 to let police know they were experiencing a theft. They got dressed, and jumped into their vehicle. Darryl drove while Kristy communicated with police. Kristy shared the secure link from the portal with police so they could track the ATMs movement on their own mobile devices.

Suddenly the ATM appeared to stop moving. Darryl and Kristy met police outside of a garage that was next to what appeared to be an abandoned house. This seemed to be where the ATM had stopped. Unsure of what might be waiting for them inside, the responding officers waited for backup to arrive before attempting to enter the garage. Once backup arrived, police advised Darryl and Kristy to remain in their vehicle as they entered.

Moments later, police emerged inviting Darryl and Kristy to enter the garage where they discovered their ATM. The thieves had stashed the ATM in the garage of the abandoned house, planning to return later to empty the money from the cash cartridges.

Thanks to the help of DPL’s Protector GPS, Darryl and Kristy were able to recover their ATM and over $25,000 in vault cash. During the theft, one of the culprits apparently injured themselves leaving trace amounts of blood on the ATMs. Through DNA testing, police were able to positively identify and prosecute the persons responsible. Experience shows that catching thieves is an important step in stopping ATM smash and grabs. Often during a string of ATM thefts, it’s one group of individuals responsible and once they’re caught, the thefts stop.

Darryl and Kristy were DPL’s first inductees into their Badass Bandit Buster group, a designation they’re proud of. DPL is dedicated to developing products that solve real problems for their customers and they look forward to helping more IADs put an end to ATM thefts.

To learn more about DPL’s Protector GPS accessory visit https://www.dplwireless.com/atm-protector, call DPL toll free at 1-866-561-8880 or email sales@dplwireles.com.