PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia police are looking for the individual or individuals responsible for attempting to break into an ATM at a sandwich spot in Fishtown early Friday morning.
Around 1:30 a.m., the bomb squad was called to the scene at Johnny’s Hots, located near North Delaware and East Columbia avenues, just up the street from Rivers Casino. Officials said a powerful explosive device was used to try to blow up the ATM in the parking area.
Although the blast caused metal fragments of the ATM to fly 50 feet away, police said no money was accessed. The safe inside was not breached.
“It’s a very, very serious crime,” said Chief Inspector Scott Small. “Not only are you possibly facing federal charges with our ATF Task Force, but you are looking at charges of reckless endangerment and also using an explosive device to commit a crime. So you are looking at some serious charges and you will do some serious jail time if you are apprehended for doing something like this.
“Years ago in the city, we had a rash of these explosions. However, it’s been years … so this is the first of this nature to happen in a few years.”
Small said several surveillance cameras are in the area, so hopefully the footage will lead to arrests.