CONCORD, Calif. (KRON) — Two Concord businesses were hit by cars in separate attempted break-ins Monday night. Both incidents were captured on video and it is believed the same group of thieves were behind it.
In both incidents, the suspects walked away empty-handed but caused significant damage in the process.
Tyler Hagen, who owns HSD Engineering in Solano Way, is blocking vehicle access to one of his stores until the roll-up door is replaced. The car is backed in, just as the suspect who rammed the door positioned it during the attempted robbery Monday night.
“Fortunately, the only thing that saved the building from complete demolition was a recently purchased forklift, which also serves as a new way to open and close doors,” says Hagen.
Just after 9:45 p.m. Monday, a group of suspects attempted to break in using a car with stolen license plates, but once they looked inside, Hagen said, they discovered a high-vacuum vehicle. He said he chose to leave without stealing anything from the repair work.
“I decided to destroy their car and my door and flee,” Hagen said.
“I think they were looking for a marijuana cultivation facility,” said Alex Lobodovsky, Mr. Hagen's business partner.
Mr. Lobodovsky co-owns the building with Mr. Hagen and runs Certech next door.
“Because that forklift was in the way, they were in this building, probably taking out customer work, so it belongs in the lab,” Lobodovsky said.
Lobodovsky and Hagen are offering a $500 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case. Repairing the damage will cost more than $2,000.
“It's not cheap, but we're going to pay for it out of pocket,” Hagen said.
Just five minutes before the attempted robbery, a business owner less than two miles away shared surveillance video on KRON4.com and issued a complaint against Micro Measurement Co. and Pacific Instruments Co. on Pike Lane, claiming to be the same workers. The same person was seen doing the same thing.
Once again, the would-be thieves rammed the car into the roll-up door, looked inside, and then drove off without doing anything. The sister companies manufacture high-precision data systems for customers such as NASA and the U.S. military.
Hagen hopes someone recognizes the suspect.
“Send a message and tell others not to do things like this. It's not beneficial to anyone. Nobody wins here,” Hagen said.
Reports have been filed with the Concord Police Department in both cases.
