Attaul Qayyum, 22, drove for the group that installed devices on a machine in Ramsgate in August 2020.
They were arrested later that day after an off-duty police officer noticed them acting suspiciously.
Qayyum, of Abbotsbury Road, Morden, south London, was sentenced to 15 months in prison on Tuesday, June 14, 2022, after being convicted of possessing articles for use in fraud.
On the evening of Friday, August 21, 2020, Kent Police were called after members of the public reported that the machine in Grange Road was refusing to accept their cards.
A cash machine user discovered a recording device hidden inside a false panel attached to the machine after further inspection.
Officers responded to the scene and reviewed CCTV footage, which revealed that two men approached the machine, one keeping an eye out while the other attached the devices.
Not long after, one of the police officers who had attended and viewed the footage was off-duty when she saw three men in the same area, two of whom she recognised from the CCTV.
She dialled 911 and reported their presence before following their car to the roundabout at St Nicholas-at-Wade on the Thanet Way.
Her colleagues on the scene quickly apprehended the suspect vehicle and arrested the three men inside. The driver was Qayyum.
Further investigation revealed that a similar incident to the one in Ramsgate had occurred earlier that day in Broadstairs High Street. A card that had been lost during the incident was discovered in the vehicle, along with other items.
The other two men involved previously admitted to the same charge as Qayyum and were sentenced to nine months and seven months in prison, respectively, in October 2020.
Qayyum and his associates were looking to defraud members of the public, who would have suffered financial difficulties and heartache as a result,’ said PC Ellen Green of Kent Police.
‘I’d like to commend the members of the public who noticed the items attached to the cash machine, as well as the off-duty officer who followed the trio as they left the scene.’
‘I urge anyone who sees similar setups at cash machines or suspects they have been defrauded to report it to police so we can investigate and bring offenders to justice.’
