Gang war over ATMs: Police hunt escaped criminal!

The hunt for a particularly dangerous criminal is on: The 29-year-old Dutchman, known as the head of the notorious “Battering Ram” gang, escaped from prison on Monday morning. This gang made headlines in 2023 with a series of burglaries and ATM blasts, particularly in Markgrafneusiedl in the Gänserndorf district. Police have been searching for the man since the outbreak and have already released a photograph to ask the public for help. Information will be treated confidentially and can be sent to the Lower Austria State Criminal Police Office 5min.at reported.

On the same day, investigative authorities from Germany and the Netherlands achieved a significant success in the fight against criminal structures responsible for ATM explosions. During searches in the Amsterdam, Utrecht and The Hague regions, investigators found explosive material as well as stolen goods such as money counting machines and smartphones. Nine of the 23 accused are now in custody. Lower Saxony's Interior Minister Boris Pistorius emphasizes that this allows the authorities to gain insight into the organizational structures of these criminal groups. In 2022, 414 ATMs were blown up in Germany, and thanks to professional planning, the perpetrators were able to steal significant amounts of up to 100,000 euros. Cross-border deployment, like FAZ.net is the result of more than a year and a half of intensive investigations and shows how important international cooperation is in the fight against such crimes.