I find this both mildly amusing and the height of stupidity. The Bangkok Post today reports the arrest of two British men aged 25 and 34 for trying to steal cash from ATM machines in Pattaya after they had run out of money. A third suspect is on the run.

 

It’s amusing because of the tactics they used. No use of fake or stolen bank cards. These Rambos hired rented pick-up trucks and a saloon car, purchased ropes and tried to steal the cash by yanking the machines from their foundations! They succeeded in getting them loose, but still could not access cash. Besides, by then the banks’ alarms were ringing and so each time they had to flee the scene.

 

And it’s plain dumb because of the security cameras built in to ATMs and dotted around the streets.

 

Apparently the Brits arrived in Thailand as tourists ten years ago and have been staying in Pattaya ever since. The article does not say if they were staying legally or illegally.

 

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/crimes/300316/two-brits-nabbed-for-bungled-atm-thefts

British newspapers often carry stories of foreigners living in Britain, legally or not, who have carried out crimes. The reader is left feeling indignant that such people can come to our country, accept our hospitality, yet abuse that trust. This BP article shows us the other side of the coin. We've known for some time that Brits behaving badly abroad is very common, but it's usually assumed they are just visiting a foreign country and got a little carried away, so it's rather disconcerting to have it rammed home that Brits living abroad are more than capable of abusing the hospitality and trust of their adopted home.

 

I take it the younger one came to Thailand with his father 'more than 10 years ago' which would make him 15 or even younger when he arrived. That suggests his father / parents cared little for his future welfare if they were prepared to disrupt his schooling at a difficult age. I'm not trying to make excuses for this guy, but if I had to guess I'd say he comes from a pretty dysfunctional family.

As far as I know, if you open an ATM with force the money in it will be stained by ink, or even worse there is a device that sprays out permanent ink so the thief and his surroundings will get stained as well.