Kids steal pastries after breaking into Long Beach Bakery

With no cash in the register, a group of kids settled for the pastries on display after breaking into a Long Beach bakery Saturday morning. 

Security cameras captured the suspects shattering the front door of Sweet Jill's Bakery roughly 30 minutes before the manager arrived. Owner Jill Pharis said the burglars were out of the shop within five minutes. 

"They attempted to get in the registers but could not," Pharis said. "Well, there's nothing in there anyway. So, they gave up on that idea and decided to help themselves to the milk and the baked goods instead."

Pharis said the burglars broke floor tiles, mashed cupcakes and pushed everything on the floor before leaving in their getaway car. She believes the kids caused somewhere between $4,000 and $5,000. 

After baking in Long Beach for 37 years, Pharis said this is the first time someone broke into her store. She added that the Long Beach Police Department is trying to track down the burglars. Local schools also offered to help after she posted the security camera footage on social media. 

"I want them to suffer consequences, most definitely," Pharis said. "I want them to suffer. I want their parents to suffer ... I don't care about their age. If that's the image they want to present themselves at such a young age, I fear for their future. Something has to stop."

Despite the break-in, Pharis cleaned up the mess the kids left behind and opened the store by 5:30 a.m. 

"We had cinnamon rolls on the counter by 5:30 a.m., like we normally do," Pharis said.