Barman Finds Loophole In ATM Banking System & Made $1.6 Million

A country barman has experienced life as a millionaire after he discovered a 'loophole' in his bank's ATM system. Dan Saunders, from Wangaratta in north-eastern Victoria, lived the high life for about four and a half months in February 2011, spending wildly on expensive escorts, private jets, exclusive restaurants and gambling. The 29-year old-stumbled across a technical fault in the National Australia Bank's ATM system which meant he had access to free money whenever or wherever he wanted.

'I've never felt more alive than when I was charging on my credit card,' Mr Saunders told Australia's Current Affair. 'With the NAB card I could be anyone I wanted to be, go anywhere I wanted to go, do anything as long as I had the card in my back pocket. I felt like a king. I felt like a rock star, probably looked like a fat, white Kanye West, but you felt like you were Kanye West,' he said.

In an exclusive interview with ACA, he divulged how it all unfolded one night out for beers with mates and how he quickly went on a wild spending spree, with money that was not his. Mr Saunders had just moved to Wangaratta in country Victoria and one evening in February, 2011 he was out drinking with friends.

Like most people he needed to withdraw cash from the ATM, but when he tried, he realised he just had $3 in his savings account, so what he did was transfer $200 from his credit card. 'It said transaction cancelled but it worked,' he said. $200 richer, Mr Saunders happily went back to the pub to continue drinking with his friends.

But it wasn't until later that night that the barman, who earned a mere $700 a week, decided to try his luck again. He tried to check his account balance at another ATM but it was just registering 'balance unavailable' so he again transferred $200 and it worked before he pushed his withdrawals out to $2000, the limit of his credit card and went home.

Because ATM are known to go offline at certain times, where people can transfer funds but not get a balance for their account, the money he was withdrawing was not registering. He didn't stop there and within a couple of weeks, Saunders had transferred $20,000.

In May that year, Saunders was believed to have already stolen $1.6 million of the banks money on his credit card. But like anyone who is cheating the system, Saunders soon started felling guilty about his adventures and began to see a psychologist. It was in June, four and a half months after making his costly discovery, that he stopped making continuous transfers.

He told ACA he then called the bank, who told him it was under police investigation and they wouldn't talk to him. 'It was never about the actual money it was just about the journey.' Three and a half years later and Mr Saunders had still got off scot free for his dealing with ATM's, still blazay about funding his lavish lifestyle with money that wasn't his own. 'I've overdrawn my own accounts if that makes me a crook that makes me a crook,' he said.

It wasn't until just last week that police issued a warrant for his arrest and continue to look for Mr Saunders, who is now suddenly missing in action.

Source: DailyMail UK