A spate of smash and grab burglaries in the last couple of months hit West Denver businesses hard. The targeted businesses included shopping center cell phone stores, convenience stores, and primarily, restaurants. The gang also stole several vehicles. The thieves removed cash from the registers or sometimes made off with the entire register.
Using bricks or large rocks, the thieves smashed windows or doors to gain entry and often escaped in stolen vehicles. They disguised themselves from head to toe in order to subvert the effectiveness of video surveillance. As reported by CBS Denver, Commander of the Denver Police Department said: “We’re calling this crew the Smash & Grab Bandits” and “we’re trying to communicate to the business owners to have them remove all the cash at night and help protect themselves from becoming victims of crime.”
Other crime prevention tips offered to the businesses included using shatter-proof window films or installing tempered glass. The police department also went from door to door to warn area businesses about the thieves; another way the police attempted to help was by passing out posters. Again according to CBS Denver, quoting a business owner “One of them stopped by and actually gave us these posters saying there’s no cash in the register.”
A special task force established within the Denver Police Department focused on investigating the crimes. The Department also requested the public’s help in preventing further burglaries and solving those that had already taken place; anyone with information was asked to call the police.
In the end, it was a vehicle crash shortly after midnight on April 7th that lead to the arrest of the suspects. An adult and three juveniles were arrested after the crash and linked to the series of smash and grab burglaries.
These shopping centers and their businesses are not clients of Stealth Monitoring. Stealth proactive live surveillance can detect and deter crime in Denver and other cities in the U.S. for greater security while reducing security guard and other expenses. A Stealth operator could have seen unusual activity like shopping center late night trespassers and smash and grab burglaries, activated an audible warning to deter the thieves, and called the local police.
Please contact Stealth today for more information to protect your shopping center or other property. Visit our web site to see actual videos of criminals being apprehended at shopping centers.
