Gang leader arrested in Trieste over ATM thefts
Local police in Trieste and Muggia have arrested the alleged head of a gang responsible for more than ten thefts from cash machines. The investigation led to the recovery of the devices in wooded areas of Borgo San Sergio.
Criminal group behind ATM thefts dismantled
According to rainews.it, the cities of Trieste and Muggia were hit by around ten thefts from cash machines in the preceding months. The criminals operated at night with covered faces, smashing windows, disabling video surveillance systems and removing the devices within minutes.
The investigation began in May 2026 following two thefts on the same night: one at a bar-bakery on via Flavia and one at a restaurant in Muggia, approximately an hour apart. Local police identified a van with concealed number plates used in the commission of the crimes. The registered owner of the vehicle proved to be unrelated to the facts.
The methods of the two thefts were similar to a previous incident in central Trieste. The investigation, coordinated by prosecutor Cristina Bacer, focused on an individual who had worked at one of the targeted premises and had possible access to the van. A few days later, the gang struck again, this time at the Muggia branch of the same bar-pizzeria that had already been a victim in central Trieste, using a third vehicle that was traceable because it had no concealed number plates.
Investigators identified a small villa in the Borgo San Sergio district as the group's operational base. During the search, stolen cash machines were recovered in the wooded areas of the zone: the devices had been emptied of money and set on fire. The judge for preliminary investigations ordered house arrest for the alleged head of the gang.
Source: Google News IT — Crime (it)