Video catches sickening thief targeting unsuspecting ATM customer

Police are urging Australians to be cautious when using ATMs after an 80-year-old Western Australian woman was targeted using a machine late last month.

Victoria Police released a statement on Monday explaining they were on the hunt for an unidentified man after he brazenly snatched the cash out of the hands of the lady who had just used an ATM in the Melbourne suburb of Toorak.

The incident took place on Christmas Eve, with footage showing the man talking on a mobile phone as the woman withdrew cash from the machine. He could be seen standing behind the woman, only to run up and take the cash from her hand. Then man then fled the scene by foot.

Police have released CCTV footage of the man they believe will be able to assist them with their enquiries. He is believed to be Caucasian, 177cm tall with a thin build. The man appears to be aged in his 20s or 30s and can also be identified by his black hair, beard and moustache.

In the image, the man is wearing a black t-shirt, pink shorts, as well as a black cap and sunglasses.

“Anyone with information or who may recognise the man is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au,” Senior Constable Alistair Parsons said in a statement.

Meanwhile, radio station 3AW also shared the video footage of the robbery, while 7 News reporter Jodi Lee went into further detail about what happened.

Let's find this jerk before 2018 is out.

He robbed an 80-year-old woman at a Toorak ATM last week + hasn't yet been caught.

More detail: https://t.co/s35d1kGMa2 pic.twitter.com/cjd2e95j5X

— 3AW Melbourne (@3AW693) December 30, 2018

The woman was visiting family in Melbourne for Christmas and is originally from Perth.

“As her cash came out of the machine, this bloke’s actually grabbed the wad of cash and then run off,” Lee explained to Nick McCallum. “So the woman was certainly shaken and without $1,000 she’d just withdrawn from the ATM.”

There was no physical attack on the lady as such, but the woman is reportedly shaken up.

“She thought nothing of the young man standing behind her until he pounced,” Lee continued.

According to Lee, the robbery was more than a random attack and that the man was likely loitering near the ATM, looking for an unsuspecting victim.

Read more: Video catches thief throwing 87-year-old to the ground in brutal mugging

It’s not the first time an older member of the community has been targeted in such an attack. Last year, CCTV footage captured the horrifying moment an 87-year-old man was attacked and robbed in broad daylight in Brisbane.

In footage obtained exclusively by 7 News, great-grandfather Ray Browne was walking along a ramp at a shopping centre in the Brisbane suburb of Oxley when he was allegedly attacked. The man could be seen walking with the assistance of a walking, before a man walked by and asked him a question.

The man then tried to grab Browne’s wallet but ended up knocking him to the floor in the process.

Read more: Video catches sickening thief mugging unsuspecting churchgoer

Do you feel safe withdrawing money in public? How do you protect yourself when you’re out and about?