Bitcoin ATM operator Bitcoin Depot: Law enforcement officers' use of violent means to withdraw money from ATMs is suspected of being illegal

According to Decrypt, Texas police used power tools last week to retrieve $32,000.00 from a Bitcoin Depot Bitcoin ATM. Bitcoin ATM operator Bitcoin Depot's Chief Legal Officer Chris Ryan stated that it is an overreach and may violate the law for U.S. law enforcement to use violent means to retrieve cash from Bitcoin ATMs. Its Chief Operating Officer Scott Buchanan said that the machine must be completely replaced because law enforcement cut open the "physicality" of the self-service terminal. A report from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) found that in 2024, Americans lost at least $247.00 million through cryptocurrency self-service terminals, a 31% increase from 2023. Previously, the sheriff of Jasper County, Texas, used cutting tools to forcibly dismantle a Bitcoin ATM in an attempt to recover $25,000.00 that had been defrauded from local residents. [ChainCatcher]