IBARAKI (TR) – Last week, thieves targeted multiple coin-operated laundromats in two cities in the prefecture — and security camera footage shows the perpetrators in action.
At around 2:45 a.m. on November 14, two men, dressed in black, entered a laundromat in Kamisu City, reports Fuji News Network (Nov. 15).
In footage shot inside the store, the pair immediately go to the cash machine and begin trying to pry off the cover with crowbars. They complete the job in a mere 40 seconds, netting around 250,000 yen, according to a staff member.
Fifteen minutes later another laundromat in the same city was targeted.
Again, two men dressed in black are seen in security camera footage entering the laundromat. Their target, too, is the cash machine. In this case, they complete the job in 90 seconds.
Rinse, repeat
The crimes did not end there. Similar incidents were also confirmed in Namegata City, which is north of Kamisu.
In one case, two perpetrators enter the laundromat and make a beeline for the cash machine. However, they encounter something a little different from the previous outlets.
This store had been burglarized in the past. As a result, management took measures to prevent the machine from opening from the front. But the thieves still managed to get to the cash, making off with 89,000 yen.
Interviews conducted by the network revealed that at least five Laundromats in Kamisu and Namegata were robbed on November 14 alone.
“The manufacturer [of the machine] has taken measures,” one employee of a targeted store said, “but they are going beyond that and are destroying the machines. They are getting better and it is taking less time.”
Every time stores strengthen their measures, the thieves figure out a way. This is causing concern. “No matter what measures we take, it’s just a cat-and-mouse game,” the employee said.
