Burglars strike 3 SLO County businesses in 2 hours. Police say crimes may be connected
A string of burglaries that took place Tuesday morning across San Luis Obispo County may be connected, according to Arroyo Grande Police Cmdr. Shawn Cosgrove.
Dream Dinners in San Luis Obispo, Hoagies Sandwiches & Grill in Pismo Beach and Log Cabin Market in Arroyo Grande were all burglarized within a two-hour time frame early Tuesday morning, police said.
Cosgrove said four burglars in a van were believed to be involved.
Break-in reported at SLO business
Dream Dinners, a meal preparation business located at 795 Foothill Blvd. in San Luis Obispo, reported a break-in just after 2 a.m. Tuesday.
Owner Lauren Grik Persall said she had just gone to bed when her phone alerted her that someone had triggered four motion sensors within her business.
“It took me a minute to realize what it was because I had just fallen asleep,” Grik Persall said. “All of the sudden I realized, ‘Wait, that’s the ping sound for the alarm at my store.’ ”
Grik Persall said the alarm company called her and told her to stay at her Nipomo home while it notified the police.
According to Grik Persall, the San Luis Obispo Police Department responded to the scene but was unable to catch the burglars.
While the burglars did not take many things from Dream Dinners, she said, they caused significant damage.
“Not a lot was taken but everything was destroyed,” Grik Persall said. “The damage cost more than the theft.”
Grik Persall said that while she is upset about the break-in, she is grateful for the community’s overwhelmingly supportive response.
“I’m totally appreciative and blown away by the love and support of our community,” Grik Persall said. “I have people I’ve never even met offering to help clean. ... It just speaks volumes of our community that when something like this happens to someone, no matter what, they step up.”
The San Luis Obispo Police Department had not responded to requests for comment as of 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Reward offered for information on Pismo Beach restaurant burglary
About 45 minutes after the Dream Dinners burglary, a break-in was reported at Hoagies Sandwiches & Grill in Pismo Beach.
Surveillance video posted to Hoagies Sandwiches’ Facebook page shows three adult men breaking the bottom glass of the restaurant’s front door.
The burglars took a safe from the back office and money from the front cash register, the video shows.
Hoagies Sandwiches owner Jason Joseph said he received a call from his alarm company around 3:36 a.m. Tuesday.
Joseph said the wind occasionally triggers the restaurant’s front door alarm — but when the alarm company told him both the front and back door alarms were triggered, he knew there was a break-in.
“It was disturbing to see that someone had done this. It was heartbreaking. It’s our livelihood,” Joseph said.
Joseph said Hoagies Sandwiches has been a part of the community for 16 years, hiring high school and Cal Poly students and finding ways to give back.
“We’re a community restaurant. We’re not an Applebee’s,” Joseph said. “We’re part of the community and it just seems very violating that someone would do this.”
Joseph said it appeared that the burglars knew exactly where to go when they broke into the restaurant.
He said his back office is not in an area easily seen from the front of the store, yet the surveillance video shows two people running directly towards the back of the store when they first enter.
“That hurts more because it makes me feel like it could be someone I know,” Jospeh said.
Joseph said Hoagies Sandwiches is now fortifying its office, building walls and installing metal doors to ensure that a similar burglary won’t happen again.
“They don’t (know) how personal this is,” Joseph said. “It creates a lot of fear in a small business. It’s not the money — they grabbed some money and it does suck. ... But the thing is, the peace of mind of working here is lost for a minute.”
According to Joseph, the sandwich shop is offering a $500 reward for anyone who comes forward with information that leads police to the burglars.
Joseph said he spoke with the owner of Log Cabin Market who shared a similar experience.
The Pismo Beach Police Department said the investigation into the Hoagies Sandwiches burglary is ongoing, adding that investigators are looking into whether the break-in was connected to other incidents that occurred in the county.
Third burglary reported in Arroyo Grande
Another break-in was reported around 3:45 a.m. Tuesday at Log Cabin Market in Arroyo Grande.
Four people in a van burglarized the grocery and liquor store, located at 400 Traffic Way, according to Cosgrove.
Cosgrove said the burglars stole an undisclosed amount of money from Log Cabin Market and quickly fled the scene.
Log Cabin Market’s owners had not responded to calls and Facebook messages for comment as of 2 p.m. Tuesday.
This story was originally published February 24, 2021 at 2:01 PM.
