MIAMI (WSVN) - Police believe a man caught on surveillance video breaking into a Midtown business is a repeat off burglar, and they want him caught.
Video shows the man climbing over the fence of the Midtown Garden Center before he broke into one of the food trucks and stole a tablet inside.
“He opened one of the food trucks. That one was empty, so he wasn’t able to get anything in there,” said business owner Ninfa Diaz. “He went over to the other one, forced open the window, broke the window to get in, jumped into the food truck. He stole a tablet.”
Diaz said that after a break-in on April 3, she checked her surveillance footage and realized she recognized the man.
“We’ve known who he is – he lurks around the business,” Diaz said. “We have reported to police that we know who this guy is, the feedback that we’ve gotten is, ‘You’re not the only business.’ We understand that it’s a growing area and there’s still a combination of the good coming in and the bad that’s still lingering, so we understand the police have a lot of work, but it’s extra frustrating when you know who it is.”
Diaz said the man broke into the business twice before. “The first time he stole cellphones, tablets, so it’s adding up,” Diaz said.
In total, she said the subject took $1,000 worth of goods.
“It wasn’t even that late at night. It happened at midnight, which is one of our earliest break-ins,” Diaz said. “Everything normally happens between 4 or 5 in the morning. So it was a time that cars were driving around, so that makes it even more frustrating.”
Diaz said she’s going to take the appropriate security measures in the hope that this does not happen again.
“We’ve increased our surveillance, we leave all the lights on per the police’s request,” she said. “We leave all the lights on, including in the common areas, so there is enough light.”
If you have any information on this burglary, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.