A group of technologically skilled thieves targeted multiple ATMs in Wyoming’s Big Horn Basin last week as part of a 36-hour crime spree spanning from Montana to Colorado, Gillette News Record reports.
Authorities believe at least nine banks were affected—five in Montana and four in Wyoming.
Among the Wyoming banks hit were Big Horn Federal branches in Lovell, Greybull, and Thermopolis, with the fourth location undisclosed. According to Big Horn County Sheriff Ken Blackburn, two suspects were arrested in the Denver area within 24 hours, but others remain at large as federal agencies continue their investigation.
The crime involved ATM jackpotting, a technique where criminals exploit software and physical vulnerabilities in ATMs to force them to dispense cash. Law enforcement officials say the thieves installed a device inside the machines, allowing a hacker to take control remotely. Once the machines were compromised, others would arrive to collect the cash, which was not linked to any customer account.
The spree started on March 15 in Montana, before the thieves moved into Wyoming the next day. Surveillance footage shows them hitting the Lovell ATM around 9 a.m., Greybull at 2 p.m., and Thermopolis at 7 p.m. By early Monday morning, March 17, the group had made its way to Denver.
Big Horn Federal President and CEO John Coyne III revealed this was not the first time the bank’s ATMs had been targeted. About 90 days earlier, an overnight attempt was made at the Lovell and Greybull locations, with the Lovell ATM being successfully compromised. A suspect in that case was later arrested in South Dakota and was linked to a Venezuelan prison gang operating in the Denver area. However, authorities have not confirmed if the latest thefts are connected to the same group.
The latest thefts were discovered on the morning of March 17, when a bank employee noticed power fluctuations in the ATMs. Surveillance footage quickly revealed the cause. Sheriff Blackburn credited local police departments in Lovell, Greybull, and Thermopolis for their swift response, which allowed state and federal agencies to get involved quickly.
The Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) was instrumental in securing warrants, and when two suspects were arrested in Denver, they were detained on Big Horn County warrants. Blackburn expects the case to transition to federal prosecution soon, given the nationwide scope of the crime.
Following the thefts, the FBI confiscated the ATM hard drives for forensic analysis to determine how the machines were compromised. Big Horn Federal is taking additional security measures, completely rebuilding its ATMs from the inside out. While insurance is expected to cover financial losses, the machines are expected to remain offline for two to three weeks.
Coyne emphasized that customer information was not compromised, but the rising trend of ATM jackpotting is a growing concern. According to the FBI, ATM jackpotting has resulted in an estimated $3.2 billion in stolen cash nationwide, with the crime increasingly moving from the coasts to smaller communities with fewer resources.
“This is a national problem,” Coyne said. “They’re preying on small towns that don’t have 24/7 monitoring.”
