A man was arrested in connection with a break-in and fire at a family owned restaurant early Tuesday in a Pacioma strip mall.
Firefighters responded at about 2:30 a.m. to the business in the 11600 block of Glenoaks Boulevard. The owner of El Huarache Veloz told firefighters that the fire was likely started by someone who broke into the building.
A football and rock were found near a broken window, the fire department said. Police said the break-in was caught on camera.
The man apparently started the fire near soda machines in the restaurant. He was taken into custody by police near the business.
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The damage was being assessment early Tuesday. No one was in the building at the time of the fire.
“It’s very frustrating,” said Melissa Caballero, wife of the restaurant owner. “COVID, we were shut down. We’ve been in this community. We’re very well known, and we’re just trying to rebuild and get back to some kind of normality.”
The family has owned the business for nearly 30 years.
