View source for Walnut Creek California Bitcoin ATM Robbery

{{Imported Case Study|source=https://www.quadrigainitiative.com/casestudy/walnutcreekcaliforniabitcoinatmrobbery.php}}[[File:Walnutcreekatm.jpg|thumb|Walnut Creek Bitcoin ATM]]A bitcoin ATM robbery in Walnut Creek, California, United States was shared on Reddit by California resident and Reddit user "Calsmokes".

== About Walnut Creek ==
Walnut Creek is a city located in [[wikipedia:Contra_Costa_County,_California|Contra Costa County, California]], in the [[wikipedia:East_Bay|East Bay]] region of the [[wikipedia:San_Francisco_Bay_Area|San Francisco Bay Area]], about 16 miles (26 kilometers) east of the city of [[wikipedia:Oakland,_California|Oakland]]. The total population was only 70,127 as of the 2020 census, Walnut Creek serves as a vibrant hub for its neighboring cities because of its location at the junction of the highways from [[wikipedia:Sacramento,_California|Sacramento]] and [[wikipedia:San_Jose,_California|San Jose]] ([[wikipedia:Interstate_680_(California)|I-680]]) and San Francisco/Oakland ([[wikipedia:California_State_Route_24|SR-24]]), and its accessibility by [[wikipedia:Bay_Area_Rapid_Transit|BART]]<ref>[https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/walnutcreekcitycalifornia Walnut Creek, California Quickfacts] (May 23, 2021)</ref>. Its active downtown neighborhood features hundred-year-old buildings and extensive high-end [[wikipedia:Retail|retail]] establishments. The city shares its borders with [[wikipedia:Clayton,_California|Clayton]], [[wikipedia:Lafayette,_California|Lafayette]], [[wikipedia:Alamo,_California|Alamo]], [[wikipedia:Pleasant_Hill,_California|Pleasant Hill]], and [[wikipedia:Concord,_California|Concord]]<ref>[[wikipedia:Walnut_Creek,_California|Walnut Creek, California - Wikipedia]] (Apr 4, 2023)</ref>.

== About Calsmokes ==
Calsmokes is a regular bitcoin buyer<ref>[https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/zxfzxa/comment/j23k6ei/ Calsmokes - "I buy every day no matter what so…." - Reddit] (Apr 4, 2023)</ref> who spends a significant amount of time in California<ref name="reddit-10636" /><ref name=":0">[https://www.reddit.com/r/oakland/comments/11b1iyr/middle_of_the_day_middle_of_downtown_in_front_of/ Middle of the day. Middle of downtown. In front of Schwabb building. Nothing in the car. People suck. :( - Reddit] (Apr 4, 2023)</ref>.

TBD more details on Calsmokes. https://old.reddit.com/user/Calsmokes

== The Reality ==
Walnut Creek has a high crime rate, 32.96 per 1,000 residents, which is much higher than the California average of 23.47 per 1,000 residents, and the United States national average of 19 per 1,000 residents<ref name=":1">[https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ca/walnut-creek/crime Walnut Creek, CA Crime Rates and Statistics - NeighborhoodScout] (Apr 4, 2023)</ref>. More than 88% of communities within California have a lower crime rate than Walnut Creek<ref name=":1" />. The majority of the crime in Walnut Creek is property crime, with violent crime making up a much smaller proportion<ref name=":1" />.

== What Happened ==
At some point on or about September 13th, 2022, a bitcoin ATM was robbed. This was shared by Reddit user Calsmokes.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Key Event Timeline - Walnut Creek California Bitcoin ATM Robbery
!Date
!Event
!Description
|-
|September 13th, 2022 11:24:55 AM MDT
|Reddit Post
|An image of a broken ATM is posted to Reddit along with the caption "Crazy.... Just got robbed"<ref name="reddit-10636" />.
|-
|September 13th, 2022 11:58:00 AM MDT
|Twitter Bot Repost
|The Reddit post is shared by Twitter bot storew1re on Twitter<ref name="storew1retwitter-10639" />.
|-
|September 13th, 2022 12:47:00 PM MDT
|Bitcoin EDU Retweeted
|The Twitter account Bitcoin Edu tweeted the same image and thread title<ref name="bitcoinedutwitter-10642" />.
|-
|September 13th, 2022 1:05:00 PM MDT
|Bitcoin Fan Tweet
|The btc_fan account shares the same thread on Twitter<ref name="btcfantwitter-10640" />.
|-
|September 13th, 2022 1:22:00 PM MDT
|Asia Bitcoin Tweet
|The asia_bitcoin account shares a tweet with the thread included<ref name="asiabitcointwitter-10641" />.
|-
|September 13th, 2022 1:49:00 PM MDT
|Shared on Twitter
|The Reddit post is shared on Twitter by user 0xupup<ref name="0xupuptwitter-10637" />.
|-
|September 13th, 2022 2:31:00 PM MDT
|Shared By Eldon Sarte
|The Reddit post image is shared on Twitter by user Eldon Sarte<ref name="eldonsartetwitter-10638" />.
|-
|September 13th, 2022 2:39:00 PM MDT
|Shared By VirtualC4T
|The same image is shared by Twitter user VirtualC4t<ref name="virtualc4ttwitter-10643" />.
|-
|February 24th, 2023 1:43:07 PM MST
|Smashed Car Window
|Calsmokes posts another image on Reddit, of a smashed car window in nearby Oakland, California<ref name=":0" />.
|}

== Technical Details ==
The exact details of the theft are unclear. From the photo, it appears that the thief managed to break the locking mechanisms on the bitcoin ATM and proceeded to remove the cash contents of the machine. It is unclear if any alarms were triggered by the incident at the time, and if the thief made any additional attempts at further robbery.

== Total Amount Lost ==
Given the nature of bitcoin, it is likely that all losses were in cash. It seems unlikely from the state of the machine that the thief would have been able to feed in any of their stolen money to "purchase" further bitcoin.

The total amount lost was never reported and is thus unknown.

== Immediate Reactions ==
The incident was widely shared on both Reddit and Twitter, but achieved no mainstream media coverage.

=== Reactions On Reddit ===
The OP was widely criticized for their apparent lack of understanding of the basics of ATMs<ref>[https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/xddild/comment/ioacvdv/ petertherussian - "more likely OP doesn’t understand how a Bitcoin ATM works" - Reddit] (Jun 5, 2023)</ref><ref>[https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/xddild/comment/ioa8js8/ maniacmuns - "It takes cash..." - Reddit] (Jun 5, 2023)</ref><ref>[https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/xddild/comment/ioaaz9o/ misunderstoodR - "You put cash inside lmao" - Reddit] (Jun 5, 2023)</ref>.<blockquote>more likely OP doesn’t understand how a Bitcoin ATM works</blockquote>

=== Reposting On Twitter ===
The Reddit thread and related image was widely circulated on Twitter<ref name="bitcoinedutwitter-10642" /><ref name="btcfantwitter-10640" /><ref name="asiabitcointwitter-10641" /><ref name="0xupuptwitter-10637" /><ref name="eldonsartetwitter-10638" /><ref name="virtualc4ttwitter-10643" />.

== Ultimate Outcome ==
No further information is known about what happened in this case.

== Total Amount Recovered ==
It is unclear whether there have been any funds recovered in this case.

== Ongoing Developments ==
It is unclear if there is a remaining investigation into the theft.
== Individual Prevention Policies ==
{{Prevention:Individual:No Individual Funds Lost}}

{{Prevention:Individuals:End}}

== Platform Prevention Policies ==
{{Prevention:Platforms:Avoid Large Cash Transactions}}

{{Prevention:Platforms:End}}

== Regulatory Prevention Policies ==
{{Prevention:Regulators:Physical Theft Prevention}}

{{Prevention:Regulators:End}}

== References ==
<references>
<ref name="reddit-10636">[https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/xddild/bitcoin_atm_broken_into_and_robbed_walnut_creek/ Bitcoin ATM broken into and robbed. Walnut Creek, California... - Reddit] (Sep 13, 2022)</ref>
<ref name="0xupuptwitter-10637">[https://twitter.com/0xupup/status/1569775241835978754 0xupup - "I guess the robbers don't really get it" - Twitter] (Apr 3, 2023)</ref>
<ref name="eldonsartetwitter-10638">[https://twitter.com/eldonsarte/status/1569785829039677440 eldonsarte - "In Walnut Creek, Ca., a Bitcoin ATM was broken into by robbers who apparently have no clue" - Twitter] (Apr 3, 2023)</ref>
<ref name="storew1retwitter-10639">[https://twitter.com/storew1re/status/1569747395839201281 storew1re - "Bitcoin ATM broken into and robbed. Walnut Creek, California." - Twitter] (Apr 3, 2023)</ref>
<ref name="btcfantwitter-10640">[https://twitter.com/btc_fan/status/1569764195842801666 btc_fan - "Bitcoin ATM broken into and robbed. Walnut Creek, California. The criminals obviously don’t understand how bitcoin works." - Twitter] (Apr 3, 2023)</ref>
<ref name="asiabitcointwitter-10641">[https://twitter.com/asia_bitcoin/status/1569768432123486214 asia_bitcoin - "Bitcoin ATM broken into and robbed. Walnut Creek, California. The criminals obviously don’t understand how bitcoin works." - Twitter] (Apr 3, 2023)</ref>
<ref name="bitcoinedutwitter-10642">[https://twitter.com/BitcoinEdu/status/1569759579508023296 BitcoinEdu - "Bitcoin ATM broken into and robbed. Walnut Creek, California. The criminals obviously don’t understand" - Twitter] (Apr 3, 2023)</ref>
<ref name="virtualc4ttwitter-10643">[https://twitter.com/virtualc4t/status/1569787869337686016 virtualc4t - "#Bitcoin ATM robbed?" - Twitter] (Apr 3, 2023)</ref>
</references>