JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – After catching three ATM thieves in the act, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office arrested three men they said are part of a string of similar thefts.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office showed Channel 4 video of an attempted burglary, where one of the robbers didn't know they were being set up by police.
"They were arrested without incident, admitted to what they were doing when they were caught in the act, there wasn't much to say," explained JSO Public Information Officer Melissa Bujeda.
Bujeda said JSO detectives saw a pattern developing involving smash-and-grabs of ATMs around the city. One of the trends was that the thieves stole a certain make and model truck first, then moved on to the smash-and-grab.
"Once we identified that, we put a truck out matching that description, hoping they'd take the bait. Sure enough, in a very short time they did," said Bujeda.
Police say what happened in the surveillance video was followed by the bait and hook, something Bujeda said is a simple but effective tactic.
"To commit these burglaries, as soon as we did that, they took the bait, stole the truck, we were able to monitor their activity and they went right into a store in Ortega and tried to steal an ATM," said Bujeda. "We actually caught them in the act."
Police arrested Teresa Hughes, Michael Hodges and Robert Beattie. Police also have a warrant out for the arrest of Joseph Ferguson, who they also think was involved in the robberies.