Philadelphia man driving armored van goes missing; family pleads for help
UPPER MORELAND TWP., Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- Police in Philadelphia and Upper Moreland Township, Montgomery County are searching for a missing armored van driver who vanished last month.
The man was last seen on Old York Road when a traffic camera recorded the white unmarked armored van that James 'Jimmy' Buettler was driving while on the job.
The 30-year-old Northeast Philadelphia resident was reported missing February 23 when he didn't show up for work at Fast Cash, an ATM teller in Willow Grove.
"The van has disappeared, he's disappeared and it's a concern," said Upper Moreland Police Chief Andrew Block. "He's dealing in a cash business."
An undisclosed amount of money is also unaccounted for, but detectives say the quantity is not life-changing.
Buettler's family says this is out of character for him to vanish.
"This is two weeks and I just feel like somebody had to have known that truck had money in it and was watching him," said the victim's mother, Wendy Buettler.
She feels her son may have been targeted.
"He travels to Trenton, Delaware, and empties ATMs, and he always has cash on the van. Now I'm afraid that someone was maybe watching him or hijacked or hurt him for the money," Wendy said.
Detectives are exploring all possible motives.
The van is described as a white Ford E350 with Pennsylvania registration ZCA-2380.
There were a rash of ATM explosions in Philadelphia last year, and thefts of machines, most recently three days ago from a convenience store in Tacony.
SEE ALSO: Suspects steal ATM from convenience store in Tacony
The family is desperate to find Jimmy and have also turned to social media hoping someone has seen him.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of James Buettler or the location of this van is asked to contact the Upper Moreland Police Department at 215-657-4700, the Philadelphia Police Department at 215-686-TIPS, or call 911.
