El Paso police are trying to identify suspects involved in vehicle burglaries targeting victims who withdrew money from ATMs, banks and credit unions in the city.
‘Jugging’ is a form of crime where thieves wait near a bank or ATM to see if a customer will withdraw money. The customer is then followed to another location, where the crooks either break into their parked car, hoping the money is left in the car, or rob the victim of cash.
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“It is important that the community is aware of their surroundings,” Sergeant Javier Sambrano, Crime Stoppers liaison, said in a video statement. Residents are encouraged to report suspicious activity, such as vehicles near banks that appear as if they are not operating. t belongs.
“Most importantly, do not leave anything of value in a vehicle,” Sambrano said.
Crime Stoppers of El Paso’s Crime of the Week tries to identify suspects in an Oct. 3 case on the East Side.
A bank customer made a cash withdrawal at Chase Bank at 1533 Lee Trevino Drive next to Vista Del Sol Drive at 9:50 a.m. on Oct. 3, according to Crime Stoppers.
The customer was followed to the Walmart store at 10727 Gateway West Blvd. near Yarbrough Drive. The thieves then broke out the driver’s side window of the victim’s car and stole money withdrawn from the bank, according to Crime Stoppers.
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The bank jugger suspects were driving a red Hyundai Kona. A man suspected in the case was recorded on a security camera at a nearby neighborhood story before the burglary, police said.
Crime Stoppers noted that there have been other similar cases where victims were followed after leaving financial institutions and had their vehicles broken into. In recent years, police have arrested groups of Houston-area men involved in “jugging” cases in El Paso.
An estimate of the number of “youth” cases that have occurred recently in El Paso was not immediately available.
Anyone with information about bank thefts can anonymously call Crime Stoppers of El Paso at 915-566-8477 (TIPS) or leave a tip online at cselpaso.org.
This article originally appeared in El Paso Times: Customers Tracked at El Paso Banks in ‘Juggling’ Burglaries
