On December 21st, the Bellevue Police Department received a tip from a bank in Redmond that there was a suspicious male seen tampering with the bank’s ATM.  The eyewitness explained that they had observed this male approach the ATM several times in the last few days.  The bank representative requested police surveillance because they believed the male suspect was returning to the ATM and skimming bank customer’s personal credit/debit card numbers.

As Bellevue detectives were formulating a surveillance plan, they received a call from the bank representative advising the suspicious male was at the ATM.   Police officers arrived but the male was gone.  After a close examination of the ATM, the detectives located a small camera mounted on the ATM monitor. They maintained surveillance on the ATM for a few hours.

The male suspect returned to the ATM and removed the camera, and began to leave the area in a vehicle.  Detectives requested a Redmond patrol officer to assist with the traffic stop where the suspect was arrested without incident.  The skimmer/camera device was located in the vehicle at the time of the arrest. Currently, the potential total dollar amount lost has not been confirmed.

The suspect was booked into King County Jail on theft charges and an U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer.

Safety Tips:

Be aware of your surroundings.  If someone is hovering around the ATM, leave and report it to the bank employee or call 911.

Use an ATM that is located within a building, bank, grocery store where it is monitored by staff.

Don’t give out your debit/credit card number, card or pin numbers.

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