4 men tried to rob ATM machines in GA and AL with a truck, hooks & chains. How they plea
Four Texans who used a stolen truck with hooks and chains to drag off bank machines in Columbus and Phenix City are facing federal prison time after pleading guilty here.
Here’s what federal authorities say they did:
On June 16, 2021, at 3:30 a.m., they stole a 2002 Ford F-250 from the 1200 block of 35th Street in Phenix City, took it to the SunTrust Bank at 3491 Courtyard Way in Columbus, tried to pull out and penetrate an automated teller machine or ATM, and failed, causing $12,727 in damage.
On that same day, 40 minutes later and 11 miles away, they used the same truck to drag out and break into an ATM machine at the Phenix Girard Bank on U.S. Highway 280 in Phenix City, taking $73,315 in cash and causing $56,489 in damage.
“Responding officers found the front of the ATM ripped off and the money from the machine had been removed,” prosecutors wrote in court filings.
At 5:30 a.m., police found the stolen truck abandoned on South Railroad Street, about a half-mile from the Phenix Girard Bank. A witness reported seeing the truck speeding by with the tow chain and hook dragging behind it, rattling and shooting sparks, and nearby security cameras recorded three people leaving the truck to run to another vehicle, authorities said,
A third incident followed at 4 a.m. July 27, 2021, in Covington, Louisiana, where the men again stole a truck and attached a hook and tow chain to an ATM at a Hancock Whitney Bank, trying to get into the machine’s internal safe. They failed to get to the cash, but caused $23,950 in damage, the feds said.
All four suspects are from Houston, authorities said. They are Jamarlon Butler, 37; Marques Strambler, 35; David Hill, 31; and Traveon Odoms, 34. Each has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States, and faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the U.S. Attorney.
U.S. District Court Judge Clay Land set their sentencings for Dec. 7 in Columbus.
