Fayette County business robbed during severe storms
PERRYOPOLIS, Pa. (KDKA) - As Friday's early morning storm knocked down trees and destroyed structures across Fayette County, a business in Perryopolis was also damaged, not by Mother Nature, but by a thief.
Bill Sapanara feels violated after finding his Perryopolis business ransacked Friday morning.
"It's a shame to take other people's hard-earned money, you know," Sapanara said. "This guy here went back there and just went through everything."
It was about 10 a.m. when a customer gave him a call.
"He found the side door wide open," Sapanara said.
Immediately, Sapanara knew what happened and called the state police. He got to Cloverleaf Bar and Lounge off Perry Road within half an hour, where he discovered the frame to the front door destroyed and the latch ripped off.
"When I came in, I walked over," Sapanara said. "I looked, [and] the machines are all opened up."
Inside, the money in three gambling machines was all gone.
Whoever broke in also tried to rob the ATM.
"They basically break [the door] open, then they think they can get in, but see? They can't," Sapanara said.
They even went through the supplies in the bathroom cabinet.
"Usually, this is closed; it's set in the back, but he opened that up," Sapanara said while showing a box under the sink.
Eventually, the thief made their way to the cigarette machine.
"This is what they usually break, see? They take this out, that's where the money is," Sapanara said as he showed the broken piece of the machine.
The criminal also checked out a cabinet in the back office.
"I had quarters here and had a box of quarters there," Sapanara said.
Since the storm knocked out the power, the 11 surveillance cameras and alarm system didn't work, but they haven't stopped thieves before. Sapanara was also robbed in 2019 and 2020; police arrested a suspect in at least one of those incidents.
"I try to keep fixing the doors, getting better doors, but they keep coming in," Sapanara said.
Now, as he tries to secure the front door once again, he patiently waits for answers.
"I hope they catch him and put him in jail," Sapanara said.
State police out of Belle Vernon confirmed to KDKA that they're investigating. They also said thieves hit multiple other businesses in the area in recent months. At this time, they're not saying whether they're connected.
