San Francisco Chinatown boba shop hit twice by burglars on same day

SAN FRANCISCO — Chinatown boba store Love Tea on Broadway and Grant Avenue was focused by completely different burglars twice in a single evening within the early-morning hours of March 30.

It’s simply the most recent in a collection of troubling crimes the mom-and-pop store homeowners have handled in the course of the previous 12 months.

Surveillance video exhibits a lady casually stroll by way of a damaged glass door into Love Tea cafe simply after 4 a.m. She instantly goes to the tip jar then strikes across the counter and breaks open the money register. She helps herself to all the cash inside and leaves. The entire heist takes lower than two minutes. 

About 10 minutes later, one other burglar is available in and tries to see what he can take from the register however fails. He does get his palms on digital tablets for apps like DoorDash and GrubHub. 

Then, he makes his method upstairs and swipes a printer, money and a handbag.

“I used to be feeling actually down and I used to be feeling optimistic when the rain was lastly gone and we’ll have a great weekend — sunny day,” mentioned proprietor Nancy Yu Legislation. She discovered her store’s entrance door utterly shattered the following day.  

“Oh my goodness, I used to be shocked and I could not open the door, ‘trigger all of the glass is in the best way. So I needed to crawl in,” Yu Legislation mentioned. 

Yu Legislation’s two sons and her husband assist her run two small companies in Chinatown.

She took over the house on Broadway and Grant Avenue in the course of the pandemic in 2021.

She mentioned it has been a tough two years for the family-run enterprise.

Earlier this 12 months, Love Tea was hit by vandals however Yu Legislation determined it was too costly to switch the glass home windows. 

Final summer season, she spoke to KPIX after her present store Asia Star Fantasy on close by Grant Avenue was burglarized. Surveillance video confirmed a burglar sitting on the bottom exterior the enterprise within the in a single day hours. He appeared left and proper a number of occasions earlier than he smashed the glass door.

About 40 minutes later, one other digital camera captured what gave the impression to be the identical suspect speaking with an confederate in a close-by alley. Quickly after, one other thief entered the shop and grabbed your entire money register.

That hit set the small enterprise homeowners again at the very least $4,000. 

“It is identical to a giant hit to me. It is a actually huge hit,” Yu Legislation mentioned. “I simply do not know what to say. I simply really feel like I have been unfortunate.”

Earlier than this newest break-in, Yu Legislation mentioned she did not have sufficient funds for an alarm system however the coalition Be Chinatown stepped up and helps her pay for one.  

“Everyone locally work like seven days per week and all of us hard-working folks,” Yu Legislation mentioned. “I hope folks come to Chinatown extra typically, to assist the small enterprise out. We’d like their enterprise and we very welcoming them.”