East County ATMs under attack!

Sheriff's deputies are looking for suspects in a pair of attacks on East County drugstore ATMs early Monday morning (January 4).

Shortly after 1 a.m., sheriff's deputies responded to a commercial burglary call at a Walgreens store on the 10500 block of Mission Gorge in Santee. According to a report from lieutenant Dave Schaller, deputies were on scene within a minute of the alarm call (a sheriff's station is located just a mile away), but the thieves had fled by the time they arrived.

Deputies found the door of the store pried open and the cover pulled off an ATM inside — the suspects were unable to access the machine's safe, and no cash was reported taken.

Less than a half hour later, deputies in Rancho San Diego responded to a similar call from a Rite Aid on the 2500 block of Jamacha Road. Again, the store's front door had been pried open and the ATM was targeted. This time, the thieves were able to make off with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Due to the similarities between the two break-ins, deputies believe one group of suspects is responsible for both crimes.