Backhoe Bandits: A Rise in Unconventional Organized Crime in Newfoundland

An RBC branch was heavily damaged by a backhoe used in the robbery of an ATM in Holyrood, N.L., on Dec. 16, 2024. Courtesy of the RCMP

Newfoundland has witnessed an increase in an unusual form of organized crime in recent years as so-called backhoe bandits use heavy equipment to commit robberies.

While there were two isolated incidents of backhoe bandits stealing ATMs in Southern Ontario late last year, Newfoundland has seen the lion’s share of this type of crime.

RCMP Cpl. Jolene Garland told The Epoch Times robberies involving the use of heavy equipment have been occurring in the province for some time. The RCMP has investigated six such incidents since 2022, she said, adding that the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary (RNC) has also had several investigations of its own.

“This crime is primarily used to target banks or other commercial properties that house ATMs from what we are seeing,” she said. “Certainly when it’s a smaller area, this can have a devastating impact on communities.”

Not only does it leave small-town residents without access to a local bank branch, it causes “a lot of concern and alarm” from both residents and business owners who fear their establishment could be next, Garland said.

The most recent case occurred last month when heavy equipment was used to break into a bank in Mount Pearl to steal an ATM machine during the early hours of Jan. 13.

The incident marked the second reported bank robbery involving the use of heavy machinery in Newfoundland’s second-largest city since September 2024, the RNC said in a press release.

Const. James Cadigan told the Epoch Times the RNC considers the string of thefts to be a form of organized crime. The thefts are well-thought out and planned in advance rather than being crimes of opportunity, he said.

“We’re more accustomed to consider a crime group or a crime network as something more related to drug activity or weapons,” Cadigan said. “But I would argue that any group of individuals who work together to commit a string of crimes would be a crime group. A crime group or crime network is any group of individuals who collaboratively carry out criminal activity in our community in an organized manner.”

Both Cadigan and Garland were unable to provide a theory as to why Newfoundland is disproportionately plagued with such crimes compared to other provinces.

‘Experienced Operators’

Garland said that those involved in the crimes appear to be “experienced operators of heavy equipment.” One particular individual has been tied to multiple incidents, she said.

Joshua Weir, 29, of Conception Bay South was charged in connection with three incidents of theft where heavy equipment or a vehicle was used to break into a credit union in 2023 and two businesses in 2022. The properties were extensively damaged in all three cases, police said.

ATMs were stolen after an excavator was used to break into the Community Credit Union in Witless Bay in 2023 and a backhoe was used to smash open a pharmacy in Pasadena in 2022. A stolen van was used to drive into a gas station in an unsuccessful attempt to steal an ATM that same year.

Weir was charged with several counts of break-and-enter, theft, and mischief as well as a count of arson and possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.

A person with the same surname and town of residence was charged in connection with an ATM theft just two months ago from an RBC branch in Holyrood, a small town on the Avalon Peninsula.

Jason James Weir, a 33-year-old from Conception Bay South was charged with break-and-enter, mischief over $5,000 for property damage, possession of stolen property, and breaching conditions of a release order after a backhoe was used to smash open the front of the bank, police said.

Holyrood RCMP, who teamed up with the RNC to investigate the incident, said evidence on scene suggested a dump truck and pickup were also involved in the Dec. 16, 2024, heist.

RCMP officers arrested a man driving a dump truck during a traffic stop. The stolen ATM was found inside the truck bed, police said.

Ongoing Thefts

The Mount Pearl ATM theft was not the only heavy equipment-related burglary this year.

Another theft occurred last month when a stolen pickup truck and two stolen excavators were used to steal an ATM machine from the Scotiabank in Carbonear, another small town a 40-minute drive from Holyrood.

The Jan. 9 crime also occurred in the early hours of the morning when two excavators parked on a commercial property adjacent to the bank were commandeered to break into the bank, setting off the alarm, Harbour Grace RCMP said in a press release. The ATM was loaded into a commercial pickup truck stolen from a nearby gated compound.

Officers arrived on scene to find the bank heavily damaged. The truck was later found abandoned in a gravel pit but both the perpetrators and the ATM machine were long gone.

Police said multiple individuals were involved in the crime, but no arrests have been made thus far.

Meanwhile, the RCMP has charged a second individual in relation to the Holyrood theft. Paradise resident Jamie Kennedy, 46, was charged Jan. 21 with break and enter, theft, and mischief.

A Common Denominator

Cadigan said the RNC has investigated several such incidents over the past few years and almost all of them have one thing in common: heavy equipment was located near the targeted businesses.

“The heavy equipment being used is often unattended in reasonably close proximity to where these events occur,” he said. “They’re essentially stolen and taken control of by the perpetrators and used to carry out these offences.”

The crime groups conducting the thefts have a process in place to minimize the risk of getting caught, Cadigan said. Aside from the individuals who pull off the heist, they also have people assigned as lookouts for police or potential witnesses.

Both the RNC and the RCMP have asked heavy equipment owners to do more to safeguard their machinery from potential theft. Both police forces said they have advised owners to invest in locking mechanisms, alarms, or other security measures to deter theft.

“Some of these pieces of equipment have no ignition system whatsoever or have a universal key, so we’re asking people to take some responsibility to ensure equipment is properly secured,” Garland said.

“Whether it’s installing a new ignition system or removing something from the vehicle that makes it inoperable when it’s parked unattended, there’s a number of methods that could possibly be looked at by the property owner to ensure their equipment is kept safe.”

Ontario Bandits

While the backhoe bandit phenomenon appears to be primarily an issue in Newfoundland, there have been two incidents in Ontario in recent months.

A backhoe was used to steal an ATM machine out of the front foyer of a TD Bank at the end of last month, the Toronto Police Service (TPS) spokesperson said.

The robbery appears to be the first of its kind in Ontario’s capital city. Toronto Police Const. Laurie McCann told The Epoch Times she could find no other such occurrences in TPS records.

“This does not appear to be a common occurrence; therefore, we would not consider this to be a trend in Toronto,” she said in an email.

While the December 2024 incident was the lone heavy equipment-related ATM theft in Toronto, there was a similar occurrence in nearby Pickering, Ont.

A backhoe was used last November to break into a Pickering mall to steal an ATM. Durham Regional Police said it was the first such crime to occur in its jurisdiction. Officers are continuing to investigate the incident.