Los Angeles, Ca
Long Beach businesses continually targeted in destructive thefts
Residents are on edge after a string of destructive burglaries continues targeting Long Beach businesses.
Surveillance video captured the moment a hooded suspect smashed their way into a restaurant and escaped with the cash register.
The break-in occurred on Sept. 30 at Speak Cheezy pizzeria in the Belmont Heights neighborhood just after midnight.
The owner, Jason Winters, believes the brazen theft was premeditated.
“It was very quick,” Winters said. “He didn’t go any deeper than the register. He knew exactly what he was going for.”
Winters said luckily the cash register was empty, but the costs to repair the destruction left behind will be expensive.
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The suspect yanks the cash register off the counter at Speak Cheezy in Long Beach on Sept. 30, 2024. (Speak Cheesy) -
The hooded suspect seen walking towards Speak Cheesy on Sept. 30, 2024. (Speak Cheesy) -
In January 2023, Speak Cheesy was burglarized by a hooded suspect with a crowbar. (Speak Cheesy) -
Next door, the Ambiance Skin Care & Day Spa remains boarded up after burglars targeted the business twice in a six-week period. (KTLA) -
A burglar smashes his way in to Speak Cheezy in Long Beach and escapes with the cash register on Sept. 30, 2024. (Speak Cheesy) -
The suspects escapes with the cash register at Speak Cheezy in Long Beach on Sept. 30, 2024. (Speak Cheesy)
“We are probably talking $1,500 to $2,000 in damages for the door, cash register, point of sale system,” he said.
Winters also noted the recent burglary wasn’t the first time his pizzeria was targeted.
In January 2023, another suspect broke in using a crowbar and escaped with the restaurant’s safe from the basement, resulting in a $5,000 loss.
Winters said the uptick in destructive burglaries is hard on small business owners and even worse, it seems to be affecting more shop owners nowadays.
“It’s disheartening, like the fact that this isn’t just [affecting] me,” Winters said.
The shop next door, Ambiance Skin Care & Day Spa, was burglarized twice in a six-week period and is still recovering from the destruction left behind.
Local business owners are frustrated with the ongoing crime while also worried their store may be targeted next.
Many said they would like to see harsher penalties for smash-and-grab burglaries, hoping stricter consequences will deter thieves before a future confrontation turns violent or even deadly.
“More repercussions for people who are doing this, if they did get caught,” Winters said. “He took off on a bike and there was probably a getaway car. He knew exactly what he was doing.”
The suspect remains at large. Anyone with information on the case is asked to call the Long Beach Police Department at 562-570-7260.
About 20 people were detained Saturday during a large police response in Los Angeles’ Koreatown after authorities received reports of an armed man threatening people, officials said. Officers responded to the 3400 block of West 8th Street near Kingsley Drive on reports of an assault with a deadly weapon, according to the Los Angeles Police […]
A former Riverside County man was found guilty of sex trafficking a female victim and forcing her to engage in commercial sex acts along L.A.’s notorious Figueroa Corridor.
Elias Abdul Shabazz, 34, formerly of Perris, was found guilty by a jury following a five-day trial, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Prosecutors said Shabazz had led the victim to believe they were in a romantic relationship before he turned physically and sexually violent. He began demanding that the victim engage in commercial sex acts from May to October of 2021, court documents said.
He carried a handgun with him and, on occasion, was accused of using it to pistol-whip the victim. He also fired the gun at her feet while threatening to kill her, prosecutors said.
At trial, the victim said Shabazz demanded that she meet a daily quota of commercial sex proceeds and that she was terrified of the consequences of not meeting that quota.
She testified that Shabazz compelled her to work in the notorious Figueroa Corridor in South L.A., a dangerous area known for human trafficking and prostitution.
Shabazz had confiscated her identification card, Social Security card and birth certificate. He constantly monitored her cell phone to stop her from communicating with any friends or family.
“He also introduced her to addictive narcotics and controlled every aspect of her life, including when she ate, slept and showered,” prosecutors said.
In May 2025, Shabazz was arrested and has remained in federal custody. His last known address at the time was in Washington, D.C.
On June 26, 2026, Shabazz was found guilty of one count of coercing or enticing interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 6, where he faces 15 years to life in prison.
“Sex trafficking matters rank among the most tragic cases our office prosecutes,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. “This defendant will now face many years in a federal prison cell for his sick, disgusting, and disturbing behavior.”
“Elias Shabazz preyed on a vulnerable victim using physical and sexual violence and cruel psychological coercion to compel commercial sex acts for his own profit,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “There is no place for this type of conduct in civilized society. We deeply respect the victim’s courage to face her trafficker in court. The Criminal Division will continue to bring these cases and try them.”
Anyone with information about human trafficking can report tips to the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888
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