Thieves who ripped off a cash machine from a UK service station with the help of a forklift got away with nearly GBP120,000 (USD209,375).

Damage to the Texaco garage, in Becontree Avenue, Dagenham, was so great it would be closed for repairs for a week, the Barking & Dagenham Post reported.

The cash machine had just been filled by owner Lloyds TSB a few hours before the raid. Witnesses told police that, less than an hour after the garage closed, three men arrived driving a forklift and a white transit van.

Lloyds is offering GBP25,000 (USD43,620) for information leading to the thieves' arrest.