A small Belmont Heights pet store is asking for the public’s help identifying a burglar who broke through their front door, took $1,000 cash and grabbed a handful of dog treats before making a getaway on a scooter.
The break-in happened at about 4:15 a.m. Sunday at Pet Partners #2, 3429 E. Broadway, said the store’s manager, Edwin Jara.
Security camera footage shows a person with long hair, glasses and a facial covering smashing the glass front door with a screwdriver. The burglar then stole money from two tills, a petty cash bag and a few deposit bags, Jara said.
Pet Partners is a small, locally owned business. The Belmont Heights store opened a year ago — an offshoot of Pet Partners in Alamitos Beach, which has been operating for more than 30 years.
Business had been slowly picking up at the new location before the break-in. Jara said Saturday had been the store’s best day since they opened.
“I love having my shop here, but this is sad,” Jara said. “I can’t believe some people can be so disrespectful and evil.”
Jara said he hopes police can track down the culprit quickly. He said security camera footage showed the burglar arrived on a Lime e-scooter, which requires users to enter personal and payment information to rent them.
They were also wearing identifiable clothing. In the video footage, the thief had on a black zip-up hoodie with an image of Jason Vorhees from “Friday the 13th” on the back, along with blue jeans and Jordan sneakers. The burglar also had a tattoo on their left hand, Jara said.
For some reason, Jara said, the burglar also flipped several power switches on the store’s breaker and unplugged the internet modem before leaving.
Long Beach police took a report on the burglary, but so far don’t have any more information on the case, which is waiting to be assigned to a detective, according to Andrea Moran, a department spokesperson.