Local business owners lost thousands of dollars in a series of break-ins in Oakland’s Montclair Village on Friday morning.
Eric Kim, owner of EM Deli & Catering, saw the break-in on his surveillance cameras around 5 a.m. Friday and said he immediately called police. When he arrived at the store, the thieves were gone.
Kim said three burglars stole $5,000 in cash and damaged another thousand dollars to his door, cash register and point-of-sale system. Reza Aryan, owner of Jewel Box across the street, told KTVU the thieves stole an estimated $15,000 from the jewelry store. Kim said he believes two restaurants on the street were also attacked.
Oakland police responded to 1,334 reports of commercial burglaries last year — a 76% increase from 2021 and 56% more than the five-year average, according to police department data. Department officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment Saturday.
Just last week, the city missed out on millions of dollars in potential funding to combat retail theft. Cities like San Francisco, which received $17.3 million from the nationwide program, plan to use the money for better policing and law enforcement as more businesses fall victim to break-ins.
When he looked at the surveillance footage, Kim said he could see the burglars milling around the area about thirty minutes before the alleged crime, seemingly unafraid of being caught by police.
“It’s frustrating,” Kim said. “It really made me tired. Things are getting worse all over Oakland right now.”
Reach Megan Fan Munce: [email protected]; Twitter: @meganfanmunce