OAKLAND, Calif. (KCBS RADIO) – Burglars committed a string of break-ins early Thursday morning in Oakland's Chinatown and so far no arrests have been made. The thieves made off with tens of thousands of dollars worth of items.
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The crime took place between around 3 a.m. and 7 a.m. on Thursday, when a group broke into several establishments, including a restaurant, a boba tea shop, a salon, and an insurance company.
This is not the first time businesses in Oakland’s Chinatown have been hit.
"It is extremely difficult for small businesses surviving in Oakland, in a city already," Carl Chan, President of Oakland's Chinatown Chamber of Commerce, told KCBS Radio's Eric Thomas and Margie Shafer Friday morning.
"We have to find ways to stop this kind of attack against small businesses," he said.
In the past, Oakland's Chinatown brought in volunteer security to help prevent this kind of thing from happening.
The group that was brought in is called the Blue Angels, according to Chan. They're still patrolling. Others include other business owners and residents of the area.
But the attacks are happening during certain hours when there aren’t as many patrols happening.
Friday morning, Chan invited business owners, residents of the community as well as the Oakland Police Department to come together to find a reasonable solution to this issue.
"Chinatown is not the only one being burglarized," he said. After talking with several other business owners, including some in Jack London Square, it's become clear the problem is city-wide.
While a stronger police presence might help, OPD is already struggling with a dearth of available officers.
"We need to find ways to get more resources to our police department," said Chan.
Besides OPD, Chan is also looking for assistance from Alameda County, as well as even BART or California Highway Patrol.
In the meantime, the Chamber of Commerce is setting up a GoFundMe, the proceeds of which will go towards supporting the affected businesses.
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