Dakota J. Kaltenbach

A 34-year-old Jamestown man is facing charges for his alleged role in the attempted theft of deposits from a local bank’s night deposit box. A woman also seen on ATM surveillance video was identified but is not facing any charges, Jamestown police said in a news release.

Police had been looking for the pair following an unsuccessful larceny attempt early Saturday from Lake Shore Savings Bank in Jamestown. It was believed to be one of three that involved using a device inside night deposit boxes at local banks.

According to Capt. Robert Samuelson of the Jamestown Police Department, investigators were able to recover several of the devices — which ended up being rat traps with string or wire attached.

“It should also be noted that all the attempts that were made were all unsuccessful as the deposit boxes at the banks are all designed to allow drops to come in but virtually impossible to come out the way it went in, which is the security design of the boxes,” Samuelson said.

An investigation, along with tips from the community, ultimately led to the identification of Dakota J. Kaltenbach and the woman, who was not named by police. The local man was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon on charges of attempted larceny and third-degree criminal tampering. He was arraigned in Jamestown City Court and later released.

An investigation into the other larceny attempts from earlier this spring is continuing, and charges in those incidents are expected, JPD said.

The motive for the attempted thefts may be tied to drugs, Samuelson said. “This is an unfortunate sign of our current drug situation where users are becoming more and more desperate to obtain funds for their drug habits,” he said.