Following Multiple Burglaries, Crypto ATM in California Stolen from Belwood Bakery

Crypto thieves are not always found in the form of cyber criminals or hackers. Sometimes, criminals take a more traditional route by taking something tangible, which is exactly the case in the story of California-based bakery in Brentwood Village, Los Angeles.

This theft was of their in-store cryptocurrency ATM machine, which was one of the many robbery attempts that have plagued this location recently.

The thieves were not quite subtle, as they took the cryptocurrency ATM right from the wall, as recorded on a CCTV security video. The crook, wearing a mask, crashed through the shop doors, using a sledgehammer to break through before climbing into the empty door frame, putting on quite a performance.

Going straight for the ATM, he hit the machine twice to release it from the wall. As much as he tried, he was unable to open the machine with continued hits from the sledgehammer he still was holding onto. When the ATM was still not breaking open, he hoisted it onto his shoulder and left, probably to try this task with more skilled tools at home. According to the owners of the bakery, this was the third time the store has been broken into lately.

In a video from December 21st, two hooded criminals had smashed down the glass doors as well, and on November 18th, another group had broken in. However, at these earlier attempts, the thieves did not successfully come in with away with anything. In fact, there is no suggestion that the thieves even managed to profit from any of the burglaries.

Bellwood Bakery was established in 1994 and remains a family business to this day. One of the owners, Derek Tran, said that he was unsure if this crypto ATM had actual cash in it. However, he added that the constant attacks on their shop, whether profitable for the thieves or not, is still terrible for their business’s survival.

Hopefully, these criminals get to a point when they realize that the term “bitcoin” does not mean that there is a tangible coin to take. Considering the fact that the machine is now broken, what can the criminals even do with it now? At best, they could maybe sell it to someone in a few decades when the industry has advanced enough to make this a vintage device, or perhaps they could make it an eyesore in their living room. Even if there is some cash inside, which is doubtful, there still is not much that these thieves can do without being able to even turn it on anymore.