Execution of a precautionary custody order for a gang responsible for ATM robberies.

The Carabinieri of Provincial Command of Campobasso, coordinated by Larino Prosecutor's Office, they performed aprecautionary custody order in prison issued by the GIP of the Court of Larino.

The measure led to the arrest of four criminals and to the referral of others three subjects, believed to be part of a criminal association specializing in ATM robberies, with operational base in Foggia and active in several regions of Southern Italy.

The investigation, developed by the Operational and Radiomobile Unit of the Larino Company, began in April 2024 after an assault on San Martino in Pensilis (CB).

From that point the investigators have rebuilt the entire organization, characterised by a well-defined internal structure and the presence of individuals with specific skills in handling of explosives, responsible for the production of the so-called marmot used to blow up doors.

Il modus operandi, always repeated, provided:

• travel from the Apulian region to the identified credit institutions;

• use of large engine cars, all of which were stolen and “cleaned” to avoid possible investigations;

• rapid exchange of vehicles once compromised;

• carrying out a fictitious withdrawal at the counter without withdrawing the cash to cause the time-out of the ATM, so as to gain more time to insert the homemade explosive.

Thanks to the papers used in the sampling and the subsequent analyses, the Carabinieri were able to trace thearea of ​​origin of the gang and to identify one of the vehicles used.

Between April and August 2024, according to the reconstruction, the group carried out ten assaults in four different regions (Molise, Puglia, Campania, Basilicata), managing to complete five shots, for a total loot of approximately 200.000 €.

During some explosions, three members of the group were injured significantly.

All the members of the association have previous police records, some of which are specific in nature, and several of them are linked by family ties.

The charges brought against him concern: criminal association aggravated by the use of explosives, aggravated thefts against credit institutions, and use of the homemade explosive device known as "marmot".