ST. LOUIS — Eight businesses in south St. Louis were broken into early Wednesday morning. Police said they have reason to believe they were connected.
According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, calls reporting the break-ins started coming in just before 1 a.m. The businesses were broken into within a matter of hours.
Police gave a timeline of when the break-ins were reported:
- 12:48 a.m.: Hollywood Beauty, 3562 Gustine Avenue
- 12:53 a.m.: O’Reilly Auto Parts, 4266 South Broadway
- 1:19 a.m.: The Village Too, 4164 South Grand
- 1:34 a.m.: Royals Liqour, 6400 Gravois Ave.
- 1:45 a.m.: Family Dollar, 4645 Gravois Ave.
- 2:08 a.m.: Circle K, 8200 South Broadway
- 2:12 a.m.: South Public Market, 7701 Broadway
- 4:21 a.m.: Broadway Mart, 4214 South Broadway
Police said all of the break-ins involved a white 2024 Chevy Trax SUV ramming into the businesses to gain entry. From video surveillance, they believe one person committed the crimes.
5 On Your Side saw police investigating a heavily damaged SUV with temporary plates at about 4 a.m. in the 4700 block of Michigan Avenue. Police said it was the vehicle involved in the break-ins.
Gage Nelson works at Broadway Mart, one of the eight businesses affected. He says he "wishes better for St. Louis."
"I came into the doors all busted up and I knew what happened," Nelson said.
He says a thief took thousands of dollars worth of brand-new iPhone and Android phones.
"There's not enough cops for this crime. They try their best, I love St. Louis police but there's only so much they can do when it comes to this type of stuff too. They've got like 24 hours to solve it and they got something else to deal with," Nelson said.
Managers at O'Reilly Auto Parts said tools were taken. And Royals Liquors said hundreds of dollars of liquor and cigars were stolen.
Police are still looking to locate surveillance video from the break-ins at Broadway Mart, O'Reilly and South Public Market to confirm it was the same person.
Area 51, a south city dispensary called just a few miles away, was also broken into on Tuesday. During a Wednesday police crime briefing, police said investigators would be looking into if any other incidents were related.
"As to whether or not any other incidents are related, that's certainly going to take some time but it's something investigators will be looking into," Sgt. Charles Wall said.
Police still have not identified a suspect.
Police urged anyone with information to call the South Patrol Division station and ask for the burglary squad detective at 314-444-0100.
This is a breaking news story. 5 On Your Side will update it as more details become available.
To watch 5 On Your Side broadcasts or reports 24/7, 5 On Your Side is always streaming on 5+. Download for free on Roku, Amazon Fire TV or the Apple TV App Store.