Seven suspects have been arrested after an attempted raid on a Bitcoin ATM in Texas. The suspects used a stolen pickup truck and caused an estimated $10,000 in damage. This was announced by the Houston Police Department.
Ram raid unsuccessful
A group of seven people stole a pickup truck and rammed it into a bitcoin ATM machine in Houston, Texas at around 6 a.m. local time last Friday. The group failed to carry the ATM machine with them. During their attempt, the suspects damaged a store, causing $10,000 in damage, according to the store owner.
The reason for the suspect’s attempt to steal the Bitcoin ATM is unclear. According to ABC News, the suspects did not understand how the Bitcoin ATMs work.
“The thieves didn’t succeed because Bitcoin is a Crypto currency. So there was no cash in the machine at all.”
While it is true that it is impossible for a thief to steal bitcoins, there may be cash in the machine. At Bitcoin ATMs, people can exchange cash for Bitcoin (BTC). After entering the bill, you scan the code of your bitcoin wallet, and the BTC is sent to your wallet.
Global Bitcoin ATMs
BTC ATMs have grown in popularity in recent years. They are used relatively frequently, especially in the United States. With nearly 30,000 machines, approximately 84% of BTC ATMs are located in the United States. No surprise if you haven’t seen one in Holland. There are only 21 pieces in the Netherlands. There’s even only one in Belgium.
Since the first Bitcoin ATM was installed in 2013, the number of machines has increased steadily every month. However, this growth stopped last September. Then the number of ATMs worldwide decreased by 393. In March, the number of machines even decreased by nearly 4,000 units. The reason could be the BTC price leading to disappointing gains. In May, we saw good growth again: nearly 1,400 machines were added.
Source of information: Compiled from CRYPTO-INSIDERS by 0x Information.Copyright belongs to the author Erik Juffermans, without permission, may not be reproduced