Photo of an innocent guy who just wants to take out some cash via Flickr user J.RISTANIEMI
Annons
Amine: I think I went down the same path as most young delinquents. I started dealing weed in high school, then moved on to stealing motocross bikes, scooters, cars – I pretty much did everything that was likely to make me quick money. I wasn't rich but I was living quite comfortably without having to work hard for it. I went on holidays and I could afford designer clothes for when I went out on weekends. When I was about 19 or 20 I started working an actual job, but I'm still making extra money on the side. I've never been caught, which is an incentive to keep going.How did you go from petty crime to robbing cash machines?
I just met the right people – or the wrong people. I became friends with them because they're like me: resourceful, serious and motivated to make as much money as quickly as possible. We formed a small group of six or seven people. Our speciality was mugging, but we also did some burglaries and carjacking. We don't all work at the same time often – a simple break-in only requires a couple of us.So you're a gang?
Basically, yes. We only work when we have concrete plans and never leave anything to chance – which has given us a reputation in that world. So people will come to us telling us that a cash-in-hand sale is taking place at a certain date and place, or that a trader is storing some of his winnings at home. Then we make a quick assessment of the benefits and the drawbacks and decide whether we should go for it or not. We usually get our tips from friends or relatives of the victims. It's often their cheated wives who see a chance to take revenge and make a bit of money.
Annons
Do you ever think about the people you've hurt?I've been known to throw a few punches or threaten people with a gun if they are resisting. I think that's all part of the job.
No. I'm not some sort of Robin Hood who just steals from businesses. Individuals or businesses – I don't care. I prefer cash to be in my pocket rather than in someone else's. I've never killed anyone and I don't use violence when people are cooperating. But I've been known to throw a few punches or threaten people with a gun if they are resisting. I think that's all part of the job. As for any psychological damage it might cause, that doesn't keep me awake at night. I've never met my victims and I don't really think about the impact that I might have on them.Could you tell me about the first time you robbed a cash machine?
One day, a couple of the guys on my team met a former robber who knew how to do it. You can't just pick a random bank and go about it without planning. I'd prefer to stay a bit vague but, in some areas, deliveries are made through cash couriers who go with the loader. They parallel park next to the cash machine to avoid an attack by ram-raiding.In other places, the loader is alone – that's what we were looking for. Nobody wants it to end up in a blood bath for just €40,000 per person. It's also important to find out whether the bank stains its notes or not. There's really nothing more frustrating than getting bank notes covered in ink.
Annons
You have to wait until the guy starts loading the machine – timing is everything. And location too: the cash machine has to be in a place where you can ram-raid it. We use the car to break down the door next to the cash machine – the one the guy loading the machine uses. You can't have any pavements that can slow you down when you want to get away and the machine has to be out in the open – or you should be at least able to get next to it with the car.How did you prepare?
We did a lot of jogging in the run up to the attack, to stay in shape. You always have to be able to count on your legs when you run into trouble, and it helps with dealing with stress, too. When you're on a job, your heart beats really fast. You have to be able to stay calm.For the job itself, you start with monitoring the cash machine. You park in a quiet corner and keep lookout for hours and hours, waiting for the loaders to come by. You learn their different schedules and the different routes they take. You have to be there every day for a few weeks to avoid any surprises on the big day.Of course, you can't afford to have people in the neighbourhood get suspicious. So we organised ourselves like this: two people hang around the cash machine and two others hang around at both ends of the street to make sure it's not being watched by police – we all stay in constant contact with each other on our phones. To ensure anonymity we use pay-as-you-go sim cards. The phones are only switched on in the area, never close to our homes.
Annons
We had to calculate the distance between the cash machine and the closest police station to know how quickly the police could get there. Knowing where the city's surveillance cameras were was also essential, because the police use them a lot during their investigation. So we had to park the getaway car where it wouldn't be seen on camera.What else did you need?
We had three stolen cars and a gun, just in case. We used sub-contractors to get the cars – you can ask them to steal something for you and they make sure that they remove all the satellite systems in them. Those systems are increasingly common in big cars. We asked the sub-contractors for three sports cars and a 4x4 to serve as a battering ram. We got that for €9,000. We could have arranged for them ourselves but we didn't have much time given the other preparations for the robbery. We used our network to get the weapon – we found a piece for €1,500.Once you'd finished the preparations, what was there left to do?
We had a final meeting three or four hours before the job, just to check that everything was in place and that everyone knew what they had to do. After that meeting, one of us left to park the car just in front of the cash machine so that no one would snatch our spot. Meanwhile, one of us dropped off one car in the countryside – which would let us get home safely. Once that was all set, we met up in a garage to spread out in the two remaining cars. I was in the 4x4 – which would be the battering ram – my three partners were in a German car.
Annons
We found a quiet place where we split the cash and went our separate ways. I spent hours and hours counting my money. That first night, I was too excited to sleep. Frankly, counting a big wad of cash is the best thing that can happen in a man's life. Once I landed back on Earth, I booked a holiday abroad. I needed a break because I had been working seven days a week for two months.Why didn't you want to holiday in your homecountry?
Well, getting away with €145,000 isn't nothing. The cops were going to use all their means to find us, so you want to lie low. And you want to make sure only the people who were part of the job know about it. The cops are willing to overlook the crimes of small dealers in exchange for a big tip-off. So we're never safe from someone who just wants to save their skin. A tip-off isn't enough for them to lock us up, but it helps them because they'll know what to look for. But after the robbery, if you've done everything right, you've got nothing to worry about – unless the police start using some revolutionary investigation tactics.
Annons