A burglar smashed through three small businesses in Eagle Rock overnight, leaving local business owners shaken as law enforcement continue to search for the culprit.
Surveillance footage captured a man breaking into the front door of the Cheebo restaurant on Colorado Boulevard around 4 a.m. Sunday. After successfully making his way through, the burglar makes a beeline for the cash register and swiftly exits the premises in under a minute.
“What’s worrisome is that he knew exactly where the till was,” said George Tripodakis, the general manager of the American restaurant. “In the beginning, I was thinking it was like just a random act but now I can see that he did his research whenever he did this.”
Tripodakis believes this is the same culprit who also targeted nearby Loop Espresso Club and Chateau Lemongrass. He got a call from one of the nearby business owners after the burglar tripped their silent alarm.
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Michael Nogueira, who lives in the area, said he’s noticed a pattern in these burglaries.
“This happens to be when it was pouring rain and that’s when it usually occurs,” Nogueira said. “The sad part is that it has to hit the mom-and-pop individuals; these are not corporations.”
The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information on the case is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles Police Department’s Northeast station at 323-561-3211.
