A new round of business break-ins in Tulsa

Monday, March 28th 2005, 10:37 am

By: News On 6

Someone smashed windows of five businesses this weekend. The thieves stole the cash registers in two of them, but got nothing in the other three. This type of smash and grab-style burglary has been on the rise recently.

News on 6 crime reporter Lori Fullbright says customers couldn't use the drive-up pick-up service at Image Dry Cleaning for most of Monday because the side door is covered in plastic and there's shattered glass everywhere. That's because someone broke in Saturday night or Sunday morning and stole the cash register, which contained less than $10 in change.

Of course, fixing the damage will cost the store nearly 100 times that. Teri Franklin with Image Cleaners: "It's gonna cost us $250-$300 and for the glass, another $500 so, other than the inconvenience of it all, he really didn't get much."

Someone also busted in the door of a Hero Sub Shop over the weekend but didn't get anything because the owner now takes the register drawers home with him each night. He learned his lesson just five weeks ago when someone broke in and took them.

A man stole a cash register from a Quiznos sub shop last week, Tulsa Police say restaurants have been hit hard since December. A Subway shop had its door busted in this weekend, as well as its neighbor, a computer store, just a few doors down.

Because the computer shop has been hit three times in nine months, they added a security camera. Video from that camera shows the suspect walk up with a tire iron about 5 AM Sunday morning and break the glass, but he cut himself and left without going inside.

The good news, if you can call it that is the suspect left a trail of blood at all the locations, which of course, means; the police now have his DNA. So, once the pinpoint a suspect, they'll be able to prove the case and stop the person or group doing these business break-ins.

Tulsa averages between 40 and 60 commercial burglaries each month. Tulsa Police recommend businesses don't leave money in their registers overnight and citizens report it whenever they see someone near the front of a store after itâ€™s closed.