Officers responded to the shop on Larchmont Boulevard around 11 a.m. Sunday.
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The burglar was caught on surveillance video breaking into Boba the Great through a back door before going straight to the front counter.
"He goes straight for the cash drawer but we've learned from our previous experiences, so at the end of the night, we take all the cash and we leave the drawer wide open," said co-owner James Kim. "So he realized there was absolutely no cash inside."
The thief went on to search for other valuables, grabbling a couple of electronic tablets before running out.
The Larchmont Boulevard business has only been open for a few months.
"We opened up like three months ago and we're working on building this business. This sets us back just a little bit, but we just have to keep on moving forward."
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Other businesses on the busy stretch of road have also been targeted by criminals. The glass door of a nearby clothing store was shattered on Saturday, and another clothing store was broken into some days before.
Kim believes the city of Los Angeles needs to take strict action against criminals.
"It's just not right, number one. I think a lot of people feel like they can just get away with it... Hopefully the city understands that this is affecting everybody."
Police are investigating the break-in but no arrests have been made.