Chicago police on Tuesday were looking for a group of four suspects they say are linked to multiple business burglaries on in the city that have targeted or taken ATMs.

Police said in at least three incidents, the group have broken into stores by breaking the front glass window or door, then rummaged through the businesses to take property from inside.

The burglaries have cost small businesses thousands of dollars.

Surveillance video of one burglary, at the Pipes & Stuff Smoke Shop at 1333 W. Taylor St. in Little Italy, shows a crew breaking a front window before busting through the door. The burglars were quickly able to pull the ATM from the back of the store, where it was bolted to the ground.

They pushed it right out the front door.

"At least it was bolted to the floor, and they tried," said David Tente, president of the ATM Security Association.

Surveillance video also shows the crew of three loading the ATM into what Chicago police said was a stolen 2018 white Kia Sorrento sport-utility vehicle.

"It sounds like they did pretty much everything they could," Tente said of the store owners.

Tente said bolting an ATM to the back of a business is what they recommend. He said physical burglaries are on the decline across the country this year, the problem persists.

"It's still something that's an issue. It raises the costs for insurance for those who do get it," Tente said. "You know, another issue again — we think that raising the penalties on those crimes would go a long way towards, you know, decreasing the frequency at least."

The burglary in Little Italy happened at 3:52 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 6. Two more are linked to the same crew.

• Wednesday, Aug. 6 at 2:54 a.m., in the 2600 block of West 111th Street in West Beverly.
• Thursday, Aug. 7 at 5:27 a.m., at the South Loop Market at 235 W. Van Buren St. in the Loop.

In the Loop incident, police said the crew failed to steal the ATM, but still burglarized the store.

A cash register was also stolen in at least one of the incidents.

Police said the same crew may be behind other recent crimes in the city.

Chicago police said in a fourth burglary in Evergreen Park involved suspects that matched the description of these suspects and their vehicle, but they have not formally connected it to the previous three incidents. 

Police had only a vague description of the burglars, saying they appear to be between 16 and 20 years old and wore black hooded sweatshirts, dark jeans and black ski masks.  

No one is in custody and Belmont Area detectives are investigating. If you have further information, contact Belmont Area detectives at 312-744-8263.

Chicago police did not have more information to share on the state of ATM thefts in the city right now.