Nov. 23
Report: Police say mob made off with up to $200K in items at Walnut Creek Nordstrom
New details are emerging on a large robbery at the Nordstrom in Walnut Creek, Calif., on Saturday night when police said a mob of dozens of people rushed the store.
Between $100,000 and $200,000 worth of merchandise was stolen from the Broadway Plaza department store, the Walnut Creek Police Department told KTVU.
Lt. Hollie Connors, a spokesperson for the police department, told KTVU that up to 80 mask-wearing people and up to 25 cars with license plates covered blocked the street along Broadway Plaza in the coordinated attack.
The robbers reportedly rushed into the store, freely taking merchandise. A witness told CBS News San Francisco that the thieves were armed with crowbars and wore ski masks.
https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Walnut-Creek-Nordstrom-robbery-smash-and-grab-16644094.php
Smash-and-grab robbery at Nordstrom in Los Angeles triggers police chase
A group of looters broke into a Nordstrom store at a popular Los Angeles shopping center in an apparent smash-and-grab robbery and fled the scene, triggering a police car chase, officials said.
A call came in at 10:40 p.m. PT about suspects breaking into a store at The Grove shopping center, Los Angeles Police Department Officer Mike Lopez said Monday evening. Initially it was unknown if anything was stolen.
Suspects smashed a store window using a sledgehammer and merchandise was found littered outside, KNBC reported.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/smash-grab-robbery-nordstrom-los-angeles-triggers-police-chase-rcna6440
Nov. 22
Gunfire Erupts During Surge In Robberies Targeting Oakland Pot Dispensaries
A band of fleeing smash and grab robbers riddled an Oakland police vehicle with bullets early Monday morning in one of a series of weekend break-ins targeting legal marijuana dispensaries.
The crimes came during a wave of smash and grabs targeting retailers in San Francisco, San Jose, Hayward and Walnut Creek.
https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2021/11/22/gunfire-erupts-as-smash-and-grab-robbers-target-oakland-pot-dispensaries/
Smash-and-Grab Thieves Target Hayward Mall; Lululemon Store Robbed in San Jose’s Santana Row
Looters targeting Bay Area businesses struck again Sunday evening, with smash-and-grab thieves hitting the Southland Mall in Hayward and suspects taking merchandise from a Lululemon store in San Jose.
Hayward police told KPIX they responded around 5:30 p.m. Sunday to multiple calls from stores in Southland Mall.
Witnesses said a large mob of people caused a huge disturbance inside the mall, with some briefly taking over a jewelry store.Witnesses described some 40 to 50 looters wielding hammers and other tools looted Sam’s Jewelers, breaking glass cases and quickly fleeing.
https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2021/11/22/smash-grab-thieves-target-hayward-mall-lululemon-store-san-jose-robbed/
Nov. 21
Bay Area hit with spate of large-scale smash-and-grab robberies
Police are looking for dozens of suspects after a series of brazen thefts Friday and Saturday in the Bay Area that targeted high-end retailers in large-scale smash-and-grab robberies.
Walnut Creek police said Sunday that three people were arrested, including one who was in possession of a firearm, after an organized theft involving approximately 80 people at a Nordstrom store in the city’s downtown area shortly before 9 p.m. Saturday. Police said Nordstrom employees began calling 911 when dozens of people entered the store and immediately stole merchandise. Two employees were assaulted and one was pepper-sprayed, according to police.
Police said in a news release that they are reviewing surveillance video to identify additional suspects. Videos posted to social media showed some of the suspects fleeing the scene in cars parked outside the store.
Other Bay Area cities have also been targeted in what police said were coordinated group thefts, including at numerous high-end stores in San Francisco on Friday and at the Iceberg Diamonds jewelry store inside the Sun Valley Mall in Concord on Nov. 15.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-11-21/bay-area-hit-with-spate-of-large-scale-smash-and-grab-robberies
Just a quick compilation of recent looting events in various California within the past 72hrs. Stopped there in the interest of preserving space. This drastic increase of organized looting mobs concerns me deeply. For retail businesses already struggling from COVID now getting ravaged, sometimes violently, by large groups robbing them blind. Looting will force businesses to shutter their doors permanently, further ruining the lives of people relying on their services.