Could the Recent Memphis Bitcoin-ATM Robbery of BitKing Be an Inside Job?

As many of our regular readers are probably aware of, Tennessee-based Bitcoin ATM provider BitKing LLC, recently fell victim to a robbery where an unidentified miscreant stole the firm’s only crypto vending machine from downtown Memphis.

Elaborating further on the incident, Sean Pezeshk, an executive for BitKing, pointed out that the heist took place this past Tuesday when a lone individual hijacked the ATM in question from Railgarten on Central Avenue in Memphis. Additionally, it is also worth pointing out that the thief only took off with the ATM machine even though he had the option of stealing a host of other expensive commodities such as expensive liquor, furniture etc.

According to Pezeshk, the burglary took place right after BitKing’s last employee had left the building where the ATM was situated.

More On The Matter

At the time of writing this article, the Memphis police department is currently looking into the matter. However, since the amount of factual evidence related to this case is extremely limited, nabbing the miscreant is turning out to be more difficult than previously envisioned.

Also worth mentioning is the fact that the area where the ATM was placed had no CCTV cameras pointing directly towards it. Not only that, BitKing apparently does not have any insurance on the device.

The ATM Should Be Back In Operation Within The Next 30 Days

One of the most interesting pieces of information to emerge from this entire ordeal is that just hours after the theft took place, unidentified individuals carried out five separate transactions of $100 each using the ATM. This is an important development according to Pezeshk, since BitKink charges both a flat fee and a percentage on transactions, thus, it would have been more sensible for the person to have performed a single tx.

Also, via a recent blog entry posted on BitKing’s official website, the ATM should be back in service sometime over the next few weeks.

Other Key Points Worth Remembering

1. The ATM provides users with non-KYC transactions up to $500 — using currencies such as Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, and Monero.
2. Since the ATM was launched last year, it has consistently witnessed weekly business of around USD $500- $1,000.
3. All of the crypto assets that are doled out by the machine are provided by BitKing themselves.

Could The Burglary Have Been An Inside Job?

In Pezeshk’s estimation, the entire heist could very well have been an inside job. He believes that there are primarily two people who could have pulled off the robbery:

• The individual who made the 5 transactions after stealing the device.
• An employee who knew exactly how much hard-cash was present inside the machine.

On the subject, Pezeshk was quoted as saying:

“They knew it was an inside job because the guy was on a cell phone taking directions and using codes to open the safe. Obviously we don’t have enough information to accuse anyone at this time.”

Final Take

In closing out this piece, we should point out that the ATM machine cost the folks over at BitKing $3,500 when they first purchased it. Due to all the attention that this episode has garnered online over the past few days, a Bitcoin ATM manufacturer called ‘Vault Logic’ has recently gotten in touch with BitKing so as to help them get out of this rough spot.

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