Masked man with an axe foiled in ATM break-in attempt in Uzbekistan

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A man was detained in Uzbekistan's Syrdarya region early on Friday (September 12) after he attempted to break into an ATM, the regional police department said in a statement.

Footage of the ATM break-in attempt (left) and the seized axe and items (right)

Masked man with an axe foiled in ATM break-in attempt in Uzbekistan

Footage of the ATM break-in attempt (left) and the seized axe and items (right)

The alarm went off at about 3:16 a.m. local time (2216 GMT Thursday) at a cash machine in Gulistan, a district in the Syrdarya region of eastern Uzbekistan, according to the information. The ATM is operated by a private cash-handling company.

The alarm was picked up by a police monitoring centre, which dispatched a rapid-response team to the scene.

Officers arriving at the site found a man with his face covered and wearing gloves, attempting to force open the exterior of the ATM with an axe and other tools, police said.

The man was taken into custody.