String of burglaries continues in Long Beach; thieves caught aiming for cash register in new video
Police said the number of commercial burglaries in 2022 was about 22% higher than the average between 2017 and 2021.
LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- Strings of burglaries are continuing to pop up in Long Beach.
Sophois Sokhom, the owner of Daily Perks, a restaurant located on 7th Street, said she has only owned her business for six months.
"On Sunday morning, I was coming to bake for my youngest daughter's volleyball tournament and I saw one of the large windows was broken into," she said.
Sokhom said the thieves didn't get away with a lot of money and the cost of repairing the restaurant's window was more than what they took.
She said Porky's Pizza next door was also broken into.
Unfortunately, for some business owners, this isn't the first time this has happened. One business owner said he's taken matters into his own hands.
"The first time that it happened to us, we learned right away we need to open the cash drawer wide open so they can see, 'Hey, there's no money in there,'" said Moulino Tan, owner of Phnom Penh Noodle Shack.
The thieves broke in from the restaurant's side door.
In surveillance video, you can see the burglars inside then noticing the register is empty before leaving.
Over at Roxanne's Bar, it was a similar story: The thief wasn't able to run away with cash.
"After jamming inside, he jumped over the counter top, which is a pretty tall counter as you can see behind me, and scours the area looking for cash. Fortunately, for us we didn't have any cash registers with cash, but he did take off with two bottles. Our Jack Rabbit Whiskey, which we've been making a joke in house that he at least has good taste in whiskey," said Jim Torres, communication director for Roxanne's group.
According to the Long Beach Police Department, the number of commercial burglaries in 2022 was about 22% higher than the average between 2017 and 2021.
Police told Eyewitness News it's currently investigating if last week's string of burglaries are related to recent ones.
Meanwhile, the department has posted safety tips for local businesses on their social media.
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