Ft. Lauderdale Police Seek Flat-Screen TV Bandits
FORT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) – Fort Lauderdale police are investigating a TV heist of major proportions.
Suspects managed to break into a Fort Lauderdale warehouse in the middle of the night and steal dozens of flat-screen televisions but they had to break through two concrete walls in order to grab the goods.
The burglary took place at IAVI, Inc., located at 966 NW 51st Place on Monday, July 23rd.
Police said an alarm went off at the business around 2:00 a.m. that morning but officers found the outside of the business to be secure. The business manager, David Lee, arrived on the scene and also saw that everything outside was okay and the doors were secure. Assuming everything was okay, both he and the police left.
However, what they didn't see was that the burglars had pried open a metal shutter to the neighboring shop, EC Detailing. Once the culprits were inside the neighboring business, they used a sledge hammer to destroy the concrete barrier walls between the two businesses.
The suspects climbed through the hole in the wall and gained access to IAVI's storage facility.
From there, they removed dozens of televisions from the warehouse.
Business owner Michael Arencibia discovered the theft when he arrived at work on Monday morning.
"There was definitely a lot involved," Arencibia told CBS4's Carey Codd. "The guys knew what they were doing. They knew what they were after. They knew what was in here."
Business owner Michael Arencibia discovered the theft when he arrived at work on Monday morning.
Four pallets of flat-screen TV's were gone. The screens ranged from 40 to 70 inches.
Surveillance video captured the suspects wearing bandanas before they began their rigorous efforts to break into the warehouse. The video shows the men moving or disabling surveillance cameras from the business and nearby businesses.
Company officials are offering a $5,000 reward to anyone who can help in the arrest.
"We really gotta get these guys so that this doesn't happen to somebody else is," Arencibia said.
Police hope someone will recognize the suspects. If you know anything about the suspects or the crime, call Detective Matthew Finstad at 954-828-6559 or call Broward Crime Stoppers at (954) 493-TIPS.
