The BNP Paribas ATM was giving out money. The record holder took 387,000. zloty
A 24-year-old man from Ghent took advantage of an ATM error and withdrew PLN 90,000 without consequences. euro. The prosecutor’s office demands 18 months of imprisonment for him.
Taking out money that is not your own from an ATM – regardless of whether it is the result of a system error or a random situation – is a crime of misappropriation in most parts of the civilized world, including Poland. This does not mean, however, that there is a lack of daredevils, and whenever an opportunity arises, someone will usually quickly appear and try to play va banque.
A 24-year-old Belgian from Ghent took advantage of a BNP Paribas ATM error to make 46 transactions and withdraw a total of approximately PLN 90,000. euro – local media report. Of course, the prosecutor’s office is now demanding that he return the funds and is also asking for an 18-month prison sentence.
The man does not feel guilty, although his explanations, viewed from an objective point of view, seem far-fetched. As he explains, he originally went to an ATM to withdraw EUR 1,000 for a friend’s wedding, but during the operation he changed his mind several times and increased the amount intended for his friend. Apparently he only realized the mistake after the fact, when he already had the cash in his hands.
The prosecutor’s office does not accept this version, pointing out that even if the philanthropic element is sincere, the accused himself confirms spending a maximum of 1/3 of the collected amount for his friend. The rest, in the prosecutor’s opinion, was taken up by the 24-year-old’s own needs, especially his trips abroad.
My client wanted to help a friend finance his wedding reception. This cost a lot of money, so he increased the limits on his bank account. This is not intentional theft, nor is it some type of bank robbery
– comments the defendant’s lawyer.
Despite frantic explanations, the man will appear in court. The hearing date was set for March 11. Interestingly, media reports show that this is not the only case exploiting errors in BNP Paribas ATMs in Belgium recently. Only, no one else acted on such a large scale as what happened in Ghent.
