North Sound News

Thieves back truck through Everett business to steal ATM

EVERETT, Wash. — Thieves rammed an entire truck through an Everett business, causing $100,000 in damage, all to steal just a fraction of that amount.

It happened overnight Sunday at the Baskin Robbins/Chevron on 39th Avenue. On Tuesday night, the truck and ATM were found destroyed by fire.

 "He basically pulled up in front of the store, he stopped for a second, he backed up and went right through the three pane glasses of the store," owner Matt Perry told us of the crime.

The surveillance video of it is hard for him to watch. In the 16 years Matt has owned the stores in Everett, he's had a few break-ins, but not like this.  Not one so egregious that his morning employee could have been killed had she shown up for work a half hour early.

"You can't prepare for something like this.  The girl in the morning time was in tears," Matt told us.

It took masked criminals just 44 seconds to position a white Ford F-150 with a shell on top perfectly in front of the Baskin Robbins' front window and then back right through it.

 "They had masks on -- more like a Halloween mask then anything -- jumpsuits, gloves -- so you couldn't tell who they were," Matt said of the suspects.

 In just the last few months, there have been three other ATM theft attempts in Snohomish County. Two were successful, including one in Snohomish in mid-June where the thieves also used a truck to smash through the front of the store.

 In both cases the escape vehicle and the ATM were dumped.  In both cases the damage in dollars far outweighed the dollars thieves were so desperate to get their hands on.

 Matt has to renovate the entire building and that will easily cost $100,000.

"This time it was pretty emotional because we're a small business -- there was so much damage -- this is something that pays our bills, pays our mortgage on our house.  And then all the employees that are affected, the morning girl didn't want to come in the next morning because she was pretty emotional about what happened and she has every right to be," Matt concluded.

Police have made one arrest in one of the ATM thefts.  They are not sure if that suspect is responsible for any of the other thefts or if he was working with others.