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ATM Bomber Who Blew Up Northumberland Cashpoint Jailed for Eight Years

Police later found viable bombs at his Morpeth flat, forcing an evacuation of elderly residents.

Overview

  • Kristopher Follos, 45, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause explosions, conspiracy to steal and making explosive substances, and received an eight-year sentence with a three-year extended licence.
  • On May 12, 2025, he detonated a homemade device in the Hedgeley Service Station ATM at Powburn, but the blast failed to access the cash drawers.
  • The machine contained about £14,862 and suffered roughly £4,800 in damage, yet no money was taken.
  • CCTV showed two men in an Audi A3 on false plates inserting the device and lighting it with a cigarette lighter before taking cover during the explosion.
  • Arrested in September, Follos admitted two similar failed attempts in Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire; police and prosecutors called him an extreme danger under the Operation Sentinel crackdown.