Thieves leave stolen ATM after it falls off truck

[June 10, 2009]  PHENIX CITY, Ala. (AP) -- Ripping an ATM from its concrete base isn't easy. Losing it seems even harder. Thieves at an Alabama bank managed to do both.

Phenix City Police Chief Ray Smith said the thieves used a stolen backhoe, a pickup truck and a flatbed trailer to pull off the job at a Wachovia branch in the eastern Alabama city early Monday. Smith said the thieves loaded the ATM onto the trailer and headed north on Summerville Road. He said that along the way, the ATM fell off the trailer. Smith said the thieves had abandoned the backhoe at the bank and had no way to load the ATM back onto the trailer, so they drove away without it. Smith said the backhoe and the ATM have been processed for evidence. ___ Information from: Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/ [Associated Press] Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.