San Leandro police early Thursday morning responded to a scene where a storefront was damaged by a vehicle in a burglary.
At about 3:45 a.m., police and Alameda County fire crews responded to 2150 Washington Ave. for reported damage at a liquor store called Gourmet Cellar, police said. Officers later determined a silver vehicle caused the damage and fled before they arrived.
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WATCH HEREVideo at the scene shows significant damage to the front of the store and merchandise scattered on the floor, including a box that is labeled "Lottery Supplies." The suspects were able to steal an unknown amount of cigarettes from the store, police said.
The same vehicle was used to ram a business in the 8400 block of Enterprise Way in Oakland, police said. The suspects abandoned the vehicle at that scene.
Security cameras caught the first break-in at Gourmet Cellar. The video showed the thieves ramming their car into the liquor store four different times.
“They backed in several times. They tried to break the ATM machine but they weren't able to break through,” Gourmet Cellar owner Tony Singh said.
Singh told NBC Bay Area that he is not only worried about repair and replacement costs but how much money the store will lose while they are closed during repairs and if they will be able to stay in business long term.
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“That’s a lot of damage to us. Those people can go find a job somewhere and do something instead of breaking other people’s business,” Singh said.
Christian, the owner of 4Twenty Market in Oakland, spoke to NBC Bay Area after the suspects also went to his business.
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SIGN UP “It's just, it's sad because people work their whole lives. And it's like, you know, it's like i'm working 90 hours a week to provide for my family. And then you turn around and you just try to take it away,” he said.
Christian did not want to be identified on camera due to security concerns. But he said that the suspects caused around $100,000 in damages at his business.
No injuries were reported.
