WHITE SETTLEMENT, Texas (NBC NEWS) — Two suspects attempted to steal an ATM from a 7-Eleven convenience store in White Settlement, Texas, on Christmas Eve, causing extensive damage to the business in a brazen heist caught on surveillance video.
The White Settlement Police Department is asking for the public's help in identifying the suspects who arrived at the store around 3:45 a.m. Wednesday in a stolen SUV.
According to authorities, the suspects tied a metal cable to the ATM located in the back of the store and attempted to drive off with it, which tore through the store and caused extensive damage.
Police said when officers arrived at the scene, they "saw extensive damage to the front doors and windows of the store with debris, shelving, and merchandise scattered throughout the store and into the parking lot."
In a video released by police, one man can be seen initially smashing the front door with a metal object to get inside, pulling a metal cable inside, and then attaching it to the SUV.
Authorities said it took two attempts for the two men, dressed in dark clothes and wearing masks, to get the ATM fully out of the store. They drove off, dragging the ATM behind their vehicle.
The ATM was later dislodged from the SUV and was found on the service road nearby, according to police. The SUV was later found abandoned around a mile from the store.
