Oakland ice cream shop owners mull future after devastating burglary
OAKLAND (KPIX) -- The owners of a longtime Oakland ice cream shop are now focused on rebuilding after a group of people crashed a car into their shop, ransacked the place and stole their ATM.
The whole ordeal happened on Monday around 2 a.m. and was caught on surveillance video. The video shows a car smash through the shop's front windows and two people jump out to clear a path for the car to go farther into the shop.
The driver then reverses the car through the shop, destroying the counter in the process and rams the ATM. A few seconds later, two people drag the ATM out of the shop, leaving the place in shambles.
"It brings us back to starting all over again," Braedon Galloway said.
Galloway and Justin Mruskovic are the co-owners of Flavor Brigade, which has been in Oakland's Dimond District for about 12 years. They say they had one break-in in their first 10 years in business but have been hit three times in the past two years.
"They're progressively getting worse," Galloway said. "The first one was a rock thrown through the window and a little bit of change stolen from the register. The second time they shot a gun through the window and stole a little bit of change out of the register. Obviously, this time, it progressively got worse and they drove a car through."
The people who stole the ATM didn't get away with much money, only about $500, Galloway said. However, they caused upwards of $100,000 worth of damage.
"One person said $400,000 but they didn't come out and look," Galloway said. "But the people who've come out and looked have all been pretty blown away with what all needs to be done to get back up and running here."
The co-owners say the impact of the crime goes much further than the physical damage.
"Our employees are out of work, everybody's gotta pay bills. We have vendors who we supply that support their whole families and livelihoods. You're affecting a lot of people for nothing. Like, it's disheartening," Galloway said.
Oakland police officers showed up and took a report, according to Galloway and Mruskovic however, they haven't heard from investigators since Monday.
In the meantime, the shop remains closed and likely will be for a while, as they figure out how to reopen.
"I'd like to say 'optimistic' but not really. It's progressively getting worse. We're going to rebuild and it's going to happen again?" Galloway said.
