Restaurant owner warns others after break-in: ‘I think you should prepare for when it will happen’
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A Kansas City business owner offered an ominous warning after criminals broke into a popular breakfast spot downtown.
“I think you should prepare for when it will happen,” said Evan Ashby, the co-owner of Mildred’s.
Security camera footage captures the moment two people broke in and headed straight for the cash s.
“It’s like you’re on a hit list,” Ashby said. “If you have a storefront space with a glass door front, you’re on a list.”
Ashby is thankful Mildred’s increased its security system just two weeks ago.
“I think the alarm itself kind of helped deter them from sticking around for so long because they were in and out in 60 seconds,” Ashby said.
They didn’t get away with anything but left an expensive mess to clean up.
“We keep our cash doors open, so they don’t break the doors and ultimately not find any cash in there,” Ashby said.
Unfortunately, Ashby s a long list of business owners recently dealing with similar situations.
Previous Coverage: Caught on camera: Another Waldo business break-in just 2 months after grand opening
“It’s concerning for sure; I don’t know what the solution is,” Ashby said. “They’re just thinking about their quick cash, and it’s frustrating, to say the least.”
KCTV5 took these concerns to the Kansas City Police Department. Captain Jake Becchina understands this is frustrating and said property crime detectives are working around the clock to hold these people able and prevent these crimes.
“People need to feel like there will be consequences for their behavior,” Becchina said. “One of those consequences is getting detained or arrested that night, and that’s something we’re responsible for and take seriously.”
He also said it’s important to work with them and give them lots of information.
“In order to do those arrests like that and to make those connections to criminals early on, that definitely requires partnership with the community as well,” Becchina said. “We want people to stay involved, stay engaged, continue to share information with us, help us work through that initial consequence part, and put forward the best case possible to submit to prosecutors.”
Becchina said they’re also patrolling certain areas more frequently.
“When there is a police officer driving around, and people see them, there’s a good chance that they are where they are on purpose,” Becchina said.
In the meantime, Ashby advises other business owners to take those security measures before it’s too late.
“Give them less reasons to stick around,” Ashby said. “Just do your best to prepare, hide your valuables, don’t just leave them out. Call a security company, get motion detectors installed, it’s not as expensive as I thought.”
Copyright 2024 KCTV. All rights reserved.
