Surveillance cameras were rolling at Name Brand Cash for Clothes near Val Vista Drive and Southern Avenue when a crook tried to break in.
Jo Alvarado was the first employee to spot the damage when she came to work on November 29.
“It was kind of crazy, we pull up in the morning to get everything ready, and I noticed something but I wasn't all the way sure,” said Alvarado.
The crook appeared to have smashed the front door with a hammer, but for whatever reason, he disappeared into the night soon after.
“I was just kind of shocked, and stuff, he hit the window, stared at it for a little bit and then left,” said Alvarado.
Alvarado thinks the crook was scared off before he could get in.
She says employees were spooked because just hours earlier, the other store location near Dobson Road and Southern Avenue was also targeted.
In that case, police say Marc Esparza broke in and stole several items.
Police said he left his cell phone behind. Police traced the phone, but didn’t have to look very far.
Esparza allegedly came back to the scene of the crime to look for his phone, while police were still on scene.
He was in jail during the second location break in, so he was eliminated as a suspect.
“It's more concerning that one person does it, that somebody else thinks they can do it, 'Oh it's easy, we can do it too.'"
Now employees are watching more closely, but so far, the window smashing crook hasn’t been caught.
