Police say a man arrested this week for an ATM robbery last year in south Tulsa is part of a wide-ranging robbery ring out of Houston.

According to a court affidavit, 21-year-old Dontae Lewis is accused, along with three other men, of robbing an Arvest Bank ATM on November 16, 2023 near 61st and Mingo in Tulsa as an ATM technician was working on it and stealing more than $125,000.

Court records show that police have used cell phone data, flock surveillance cameras, and posts that the suspects themselves made on social media, to piece together the group’s tactics.

Police say in the Tulsa case, the group rented an SUV, switching the license plate before the robbery, and followed two different ATM technicians for hours, before they eventually robbed the Arvest ATM.

Police believe there are others from the Houston area that have committed similar crimes.

According to court records, Houston Police told Tulsa detectives that suspects will often surveil technicians, taking notes, and sometimes wait for weeks before following the technician to an ATM and robbing it.

Police say another tactic used by ATM robbers is to intentionally jam an ATM machine, wait for the technician to arrive, and then rob it.