At least 18 Pleasanton businesses hit in smash-and-grab burglary spree

At least 18 businesses in Pleasanton were burglarized early Thursday morning in a smash-and-grab spree that primarily targeted restaurants, according to police.

Pleasanton police said at least four suspects were involved. The burglars smashed windows to get inside businesses, grabbed cash and other items, and quickly fled.

The damage stretched across multiple shopping centers in the city.

At Mission Plaza, at least five businesses had broken windows, including one that was preparing for its grand opening next week.

The owner of TP Tea said thieves broke into her shop and stole cash.

"I hope the police can catch them," owner Carol Rhen said. "Because they are bad guys. They should be in the jail and not society."

At Pacific Pearl in Pleasanton, at least six more businesses were found with shattered windows.

Surveillance video provided by a sushi restaurant shows a burglar ripping out an entire cash register before carrying it away.

Another restaurant owner, who asked not to be identified on camera, said burglars stole at least $500 in cash from her business.

"Not just us. I already talked to the other owners of the restaurants of the places next to us, they say they feel scared," she said. "We don't know how we will keep the business going on."

Thursday's burglary spree comes less than a week after businesses in nearby Danville were also targeted.

Surveillance video from Dulce Beauté shows someone breaking into the beauty salon. Workers there believe at least a dozen businesses in the area were hit.

At the salon, however, the thieves apparently did not take cash.

"They only stole the snacks! It was crazy," Connie Palomino said. "The lady that provides those for us said, 'They must have been hungry.'"

Businesses in Dublin have also recently been targeted.

Surveillance video from Labor Day morning shows two masked burglars throwing objects at the front window of a restaurant to break the glass and get inside.

At one point, one of the burglars notices a surveillance camera above him. The video shows him climbing up, grabbing the camera and swinging from it in an apparent attempt to tear it down.

Workers at the restaurant believe at least three businesses in that Dublin shopping center were hit.

Authorities have not said whether the burglaries in Pleasanton are connected to the incidents in Danville or Dublin.

Pleasanton police said officers located a vehicle they believe was being used by the four suspects in Thursday morning's burglaries.

Officers attempted to pull the vehicle over, but the driver fled, according to police.

Officers pursued the vehicle eastbound on Stanley Boulevard before calling off the chase. The suspects escaped and remained at large.

The number of businesses hit Thursday is particularly significant compared with Pleasanton's burglary numbers for the rest of the year.

Police said that before Thursday morning, Pleasanton had recorded 18 commercial burglaries in the city all year.

In a matter of hours on Thursday, at least 18 more were reported.