And finally…to you, to me…

The gang smashed into the garage in Aboyne, Aberdeenshire, and dragged the dislodged ATM on to the forecourt.

But they struggled to get the heavy machine into the back of their stolen blue Land Rover and sped off in another vehicle. The raiders were believed to have been disturbed during the Sunday morning incident and left the scene empty handed.

Garage manager Angela Cofre was shocked to arrive for work later in the morning to find herself standing in the middle of a crime scene.

She said: “I had no idea what had happened.

“I presume they broke the door and tried to yank it out.

“We have CCTV and I think we are working with police on that.”

The Land Rover was taken from the forecourt of a garage in nearby Dinnet between 5pm and 1:30am on Saturday night.

It is the second time this year that a blue Defender was stolen from the car showroom, which is based in a village four miles away, this year the gang of thieves targeted the petrol station in Aboyne in Royal Deeside at about 1:45am on Sunday.

It is the 13th time in two years that raiders have targeted ATMS across the North-east of Scotland.

Detective Inspector Norman Stevenson said a team of officers were investigating an attempted theft which happened in a low crime rate area.

He said: “We’re still making enquiries in the Aboyne area and round about. They have left this vehicle behind for us which actually gives us some good clues as to where they have come from prior to this happening.

“It gives us another vehicle to look for, where it has originated from and what routes they might have taken.”

Detective Inspector Richard Taylor added: “I would appeal for any members of the public who saw such a vehicle or suspicious persons during late Saturday night or the early hours of Sunday morning in the Deeside area to contact us.

“If you saw this vehicle or any suspicious persons, please contact us on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 if you wish to remain anonymous.”