Beverly store owner closing for good after latest robbery: 'He just didn't care about anything'
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Only on 2: A thief captured on camera while going on a stealing spree, taking tens of thousands of dollars worth of clothing and purses from a Beverly store.
As CBS 2's Steven Graves reported, the burglary hit the shop so hard that its owner is taking drastic measures. Thefts of items worth more than $30,000 hit any small business hard.
That is why this owner said this "open" sign will most likely never light up again.
Jessica Nguyen, owner of Jessica's Boutique in Chicago's West Beverly neighborhood, will tell you...
"Yes, I had a lot of clothes!" she said.
She got into retail to meet and help people.
"People here are very nice people. I love people here," Nguyen said.
But the guy who broke into her store made it clear she does not was to carry on.
"I felt very sad because this area is a very good area," Nguyen said.
Mainly, she said, because he looks to be so comfortable in the store. Surveillance video shows him break the front door at 107th and Hale last Saturday around 3:15 in the morning.
He casually scopes out the place with a flashlight. Later, he's seen taking designer sunglasses and moving furniture around. The thief packs clothes into boxes that are not his, and even looks at the camera with no mask or no gloves, and apparently no shame.
"It just made me feel like why," asked Loren Watkins.
Loren Watkins is Nguyen's husband. He said the alarm system was not working. So the guy did this for about 15 minutes.
"Just acting like he's on a walk in the park or something," Watkins said.
A getaway driver outside takes the suspect and loot away, leaving more frustrations and fear for Nguyen. Last summer, people stole from the store as she was inside. And since opening two years ago, during the pandemic...
"I've gotten a lot of harassment," Nyguen said, for being Asian.
It's all gotten to be too much, so opening her doors again is unlikely. The brazen and bold boutique thief was the tipping point.
"A little bit sad," Nguyen said.
"He just didn't care about anything and didn't think about other people," added Watkins.
Chicago Police said the guy has not been caught. Nguyen said she hopes to sell off all the clothes by the end of the year, and transition the space to something else.
