Well-dressed ATM scammers brazenly target elderly customers inside banks

Two scumbags have launched a slippery plan across Southern California, brazenly targeting bank customers and making off with cash, according to cops.

Using a well-executed “shoulder-tap” ruse, the criminals allegedly rely on distraction and quick sleight of hand to drain thousands from unsuspecting victims.

The theft is a choreographed operation that begins the moment a customer approaches an ATM.

Usually, one scammer stands close enough to watch the victim enter their PIN. Once the transaction is underway, the scammer casually drops a $20 bill on the ground and, with a friendly tap on the shoulder, claims the victim dropped the cash, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

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While the victim bends down to pick up the bill, a second accomplice takes the real ATM card from the machine and swaps it with an identical fake card.

Most recently, the con artists targeted an 83-year-old man at an ATM on the 2100 block of Colorado Boulevard around noon on Jan. 15, according to cops.

Wasting little time, surveillance cameras recorded the criminal duo just an hour later at another bank on North San Fernando Boulevard withdrawing the victim’s funds.

Authorities urge the public to remain vigilant. They recommend covering the keypad when entering your PIN, staying focused on the machine if approached, and verifying that you have your own card before leaving the ATM.