Shocking video footage showed the scene as a California bakery was ransacked by a group of robbers who smashed into the premises with their car.
Video surveillance footage showed the devastation wrought on Ruben’s Bakery & Mexican Food in Compton near the intersection of El Segundo Boulevard and Santa Fe Avenue in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
“According to the Compton Sheriff’s Station, there was a street takeover in the area with about 100 people. Some of them were reportedly burning debris and trash in the street,” KABC reported. “Video obtained by Eyewitness News shows a group of what appears to be young men and women raiding the store, jumping on counters, stealing food and taking cash registers.”
Video shows what appears to be a Kia repeatedly smashing into the building to make way for the gang of thieves who left the small business owner with a reported $20,000 in damages and loss.
“The sheriff’s department said that same Kia Soul was involved in a short pursuit earlier in the morning from the Carson area,” according to KABC. “It’s unclear why authorities were chasing the driver. The sheriff’s department said the pursuit was eventually terminated after deputies lost sight of the vehicle.”
Street takeover mob raids Compton bakery, smashes car into store. Zero consequences for anyone involved. Welcome to California. pic.twitter.com/nUdr9veQqT
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) January 3, 2024
Other small businesses, family homes, and a preschool are reportedly part of the neighborhood where the busy intersection is located.
“It’s terrifying to know that we have a pre-school right across the street and there’s people doing things like this,” a worker at the school told KABC. “I was hoping to run into the owner just to ask to see if they need anything from us or any kind of support. We’re here for them.”
The frequency of the street takeovers in the neighborhood has residents repeatedly calling police, according to another woman who spoke to the news station.
“It’s kind of normal for us now, which is kind of sad to say,” the woman, who did not wish to be identified, said.
“At first, it wasn’t. At first, I was calling the cops every two minutes, like, ‘Are you guys coming?’ but now, it’s like, I’m kind of like desensitized to it because it happens so often, but this was kind of like, the last straw. I’m not too sure what to do about it,” she added.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department noted that the gang dispersed as police arrived. No arrests have yet been made.
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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