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Dallas police bust ATM robbery ring

01:23 AM CDT on Friday, July 11, 2008

By REBECCA LOPEZ / WFAA-TV

Video
Rebecca Lopez reports
July 10, 2008

DALLAS -- Dallas police have made a break in a rash of North Texas ATM robberies.

Officers found a possible ATM chop shop at a house on St. Augustine Drive and Oak Gate Lane in South Dallas this morning.

Police tracked a van from an ATM theft at a nearby convenience store last night.

Inside the house's garage they found at least three ATM machines and money.

Five people were taken into custody. A sixth man got away. Police have his name and they are searching for him.

Two of the suspects taken into custody have been arrested and booked into the Lew Sterrett Justice Center.

Kenneth Bendaw, 21, and James Audre Smith, 19, have been charged with aggravated robbery and a bond has been set for them at $150,000. The female, who is the mother of two juveniles, as well as the two juveniles originally taken into custody, has been released.

Police are trying to determine whether these suspects are wanted in any other robberies.

9600 block of Oak Gate Lane in Dallas

Police said these suspects weren't even the suspects they were looking for, indicating there could be more arrests to come in a larger ring.

At about 9 p.m. Wednesday night police responded to the report of an ATM theft at a convenience store at Scyene Road at St. Augustine. That's when police began to track the van that led to the house, the ATMs and the arrests.

Police are now looking for the van, they believe may have been used in last night's ATM robbery.

"Our officers are put on extra alert when there is an ATM theft that occurs," said Sr. Cpl. Janice Crowther.

"We were in the area. When we noticed the stolen vehicle outside, we waited. And, of course, when the suspects came outside, we were able to jump on it," she added.

Police established a task force a few weeks ago after almost nightly calls on money machine thefts.

But police sources say the people taken in today may be from a group they knew nothing about.

Cynthia Vega contributed to this report.

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