Police officers in Foster City who were surveilling local ATMs after recent tampering arrested a man on Friday who was seen placing a fraudulent device on a machine, authorities said.
The Foster City Police Department sent out a community advisory on Thursday after it learned of a “cash trapping” scam that targeted ATM users in the area.
According to the alert, suspects were placing hidden devices inside the ATM’s cash dispenser to physically trap bills being withdrawn. After the machine would appear to malfunction with no cash being dispensed, victims would walk away, and the suspects would later come to retrieve the money that had been trapped.
The arrest on Friday came after officers were watching Wells Fargo ATMs at the bank’s 999 East Hillsdale Boulevard location. The suspect, who was not identified by police, was booked into the San Mateo County Jail on felony charges related to fraud and tampering with an ATM.
