NICHOLL’S TOWN, ANDROS — An alleged altercation at an ATM in North Andros has raised concerns that frustrations over the limited access to banking on the island have become violent.
According to reports, a woman was assaulted by a man as she waited in line to access the only ATM servicing Central and North Andros over the weekend.
The Scotiabank ATM in Nicholl’s Town is the only banking service available to residents who are unable to take a ferry or plane into South Andros where there is a Bank of The Bahamas facility.
Residents told Eyewitness News yesterday that scores of people line up each week when the ATM is loaded with cash but most times only a dozen people are able to make withdrawals before the money is exhausted.
One resident said it had become common for individuals to pay people at the front of the line to also withdraw their money, and suggested the altercation was likely related to this practice.
In a series of videos and photos, a woman laments that her mother was struck by a man after they got into a heated argument over the use of the machine. The photos depict the woman’s bloodied face and leg, and in a separate video, the victim indicated that she had to receive stitches for her wounds.
Scotiabank’s decision to pull out of the island in 2020 was described as yet “another nail in the coffin”.
It was part of a wider move to consolidate its banking operations on Abaco, Andros, Long Island, and Exuma into branches in New Providence as the bank claimed branch traffic had dropped as much as 50 percent in some locations.
This is a developing story.
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