WATCH: Burglar Breaks Into Northwest Side Food Mart With Sledgehammer
(CBS) – Chicago police tell businesses on the Northwest Side to beware because there has been a rash of break-ins.
Locations hit so far have been on North Milwaukee, North Cicero and West Lawrence.
CBS 2's Jeremy Ross talked with one man who caught the burglars in action on surveillance camera.
The video wasn't good enough to see the face of who broke in, but it captured the act on camera.
What remains is a door boarded up -- and a plea to catch the person or people responsible.
The family-run business, Randee's Food and Liquor -- occasionally sees less than family-like behavior on surveillance.
But owner Robert Podhajski showed CBS 2 some footage he still can't believe.
On June 26, he says someone managed to break in though a locked door in the space for lease next store.
Using a sledge hammer, the crook knocked through a layer of drywall and punched through a plywood panel before hitting a soda display, sending suds soaring, giving the intruder a face full of fizz.
The damage was patched up, but on July 2 it happened again.
This time, a glass door was shattered -- now replaced by a black wooden panel.
Police say there were other break-ins nearby.
Beginning June 22, police say one or more burglars stuck at least four more times.
A spokesman for the alderman representing this area says they're aware of the issue and have requested more police patrols.
