Thieves Ram Truck into Store; Steal ATM

Someone rammed a truck into the front of the Convenient food store, 22933 Sprague Rd., early May 7 and stole an ATM, according to police.

A similar incident took place about the same time at a BP station in Westlake, police said.

Strongsville police said the pickup backed through the front window of the store about 4:25 a.m. and someone loaded the ATM into the back of the truck.

The truck took off south on Marks Road, but had suffered a flat tire in the collision with the store. The suspects abandoned the truck on Christopher Court and ran away.

Police found the truck still running and called in a police dog to track the suspects.

The truck had been stolen from Cleveland, Detective Lt. John Janowski said.

Police aren't sure how many people were involved. A witness reported seeing a man running in the area, and another said she heard two men yelling.

"Only one was seen, so we're not sure," Janowski said.

He said the incident in Westlake happened only a few minutes earlier, so it could not have been the same suspects. Police aren't sure if the two crimes were related.

"It's possible," Janowski said. "We don't know anything other than they happened at the same time."

He said it appeared the driver had to back the truck into the store at least twice to break through. On one attempt, he struck an ice machine.

Hal Phan, manager of the Convenient, said the owner learned of the break-in from his alarm company.

"By the time he got here, there were police everywhere," Phan said.

The store was closed for a day so a company could clear away the broken glass and install a plywood wall, but has been open since then.