Police arrest three in ATM robbery

Texarkana, Texas, Police Department's patrol cars are seen in December 2015.
Texarkana, Texas, Police Department's patrol cars are seen in December 2015.

Three people have been arrested in Houston in connection with a robbery that occurred Tuesday at an ATM in the 3300 block of North State Line Avenue.

Texarkana, Texas, police officers were dispatched to the report of the robbery at 6:17 p.m. Tuesday, said Shawn Vaughn, spokesman for TTPD.

The technician who had been called to repair the ATM said he was approached by two men wearing hoodies and face coverings after opening the machine. One of the men raised his shirt, and the technician believed he had a pistol in his waistband. The two men removed the ATM cassettes containing an undisclosed amount of cash and fled on foot west along College Drive with the cassettes.

A witness, who was unaware a robbery had just occurred, became suspicious after seeing the two men running to a vehicle driven by a third person that had been waiting on Magnolia Street. He made note of the license plate number as the vehicle drove away and later reported that information to officers at the scene. Officers determined that the license number returned to a vehicle that had been rented in Houston and was due to be returned soon. In the early morning hours of Wednesday, Houston police officers located the vehicle parked near the home of the person who had rented the vehicle. Three men identified as occupants of the vehicle were taken into custody, and a substantial amount of cash was recovered from a backpack they had in their possession.

Several similar robberies have been reported in recent weeks across Texas and Arkansas, Vaughn said. Detectives are coordinating their investigation with the Houston Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Anyone with additional information on this robbery is asked to call the TTPD at 903-798-3116 or Texarkana Area CrimeStoppers at 903-793-STOP.

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