Thieves target San Bernardino little league snack bar; steal hundreds of dollars' worth of equipment
They reportedly stole the snack bar's hotdog, nacho, and ice machine as well as all the food and drinks.
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (KABC) -- It's no easy task opening the Wildwood Little League snack bar in San Bernardino.
There are three steel doors to go through before getting to it, but over Mother's Day weekend, determined thieves busted through each one.
"They finally popped the door, a steel door, and they pretty much took everything," said Kip Yancy, the president of the league.
On Monday, Yancy discovered the break-in just as teams were set to arrive and play.
"When something like this happens, it literally affects our children," he said. "They didn't take it very well, plus our game had to be cancelled that night with bases being taken. So, we couldn't even play that game."
The thieves not only stole bases, they also stole the pitching machine, all the baseballs, and umpire equipment.
But that's not all. They also got away with the snack bar's hotdog, nacho, and ice machine as well as all the food and drinks.
Yancy said they even managed to score the bolted down floor safe.
"We found the safe. It's empty, of course," he said.
Donations from the community helped get players back on track and on the field Thursday night.
The league has also setup a GoFundMe to help replace the rest.
"The most disheartening thing about it is all these people here are volunteers," said Allen Pryor, District Administrator of CA District 43 Little League. "Nobody is getting paid for their time, and they put a lot of time and effort into it."
Nachos and ice may seem trivial, but the snack bar is how the league helps keep costs down for players and their families.
"All these things add up and they are big numbers," said Yancy. "For a community we live in like that, it's not very easy to generate."
