ATM Machine Theft Ring Leader Sentenced

ATLANTA, GA -- Ovino Harris has been sentenced to 10 years, 10 months in federal prison for attempting to rob the Wellesley Inn Atlanta Airport Hotel, in what was believed to be one of a string of ATM machine thefts in the area.

Prosecutors say Harris was the leader of a group known as the “Green Team” that operated out of the Pittsburgh area of Atlanta and engaged in various criminal activities including the theft of ATM machines from local businesses. Green Team members would frequently break into closed businesses, attach chains or ropes to an ATM machine while attaching the other end to a van or truck, and pull the ATM machine from the store.

During the early morning hours of December 4, 2013, however, Harris traveled to the Wellesley Inn Atlanta Airport Hotel where he and four other Green Team members attempted to steal the ATM machine from within the hotel lobby by threatening to shoot the hotel clerk. Law enforcement was called to the area, and the men fled before they could be apprehended.

Then, on December 22, 2013, and again on December 27, 2013, members of the Green Team traveled to the CVS Pharmacy located on North Highland Avenue in Atlanta where they attempted to steal the ATM machine from inside the store. Harris was arrested and arraigned on July 9, 2014.