SEATTLE — Burglars attempted to hit a West Seattle smoke shop that had been hit with smash-and-grabs two times already this week.
It would have been the eighth time in less than a month that Global Smoke and Vape Shop was robbed, according to the owner. Thieves hit the business on both Tuesday, taking out the storefront, and then again on Wednesday after the owner had just finished boarding the place up.
The owner had poles installed in front of his business after Wednesday's break-in, which prevented the thieves from smashing a car into the front of the store for the third time in three days. The thieves did break the window of the pizza shop next door.
The owner said he believes the same people are robbing the store over and over again, and has repeatedly asked police to patrol the area more often between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. when the break-ins typically occur.
Thieves have successfully robbed the vape shop seven times since Aug. 24/
He estimated about $10,000 worth of merchandise was stolen during Wednesday's robbery. Surveillance video shows a car smashed into the storefront with multiple suspects crawling through the wreckage to reach the inside of the shop. The owner said suspects usually steal bags of cigarettes and vapes, that they later sell on social media.
The owner has seen the posts and turned them over to police, but feels like it's going nowhere.
"Six people come into your business every few days and police say, 'OK we're working on it,'" the owner said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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