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Cha Café, Nami Restaurant burglarized in 3-day period
Surveillance camera footage catches masked burglar taking loot
An unidentified masked man burglarized Cha Café and Bakery in Garapan and stole $500 in change funds early yesterday morning.
This frame grab from the video surveillance shows the burglar going through the cash registers of Cha Café and Bakery in Garapan. (Ferdie De La Torre)
Saipan Tribune learned that Nami Restaurant, which is located in the same building as Cha Café, was also burglarized and about $200 and an iPhone were stolen either late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.
In the Cha Café incident, footage from the surveillance camera showed that the burglary lasted less than five minutes. It showed the suspect wearing a bonnet that covered his face, blue pants, black T-shirt, and running shoes. He has a “sleeve tattoo” on the right arm.
The suspect managed to enter the restaurant by removing the glass window in the restroom. The lavatory in the restroom collapsed, indicating that the suspect stepped on it.
The burglar checked the first cash register but did not find any money. He then moved to the other cash register, which contained the change funds. After putting the bills in his pant’s side pocket, the suspect put on eyeglasses then scooped coins and placed them in a plastic bag.
After taking the money, the suspect left using the same exit point.
It was the establishment’s owner who discovered the burglary when he opened the restaurant yesterday at 6am.
According to Leah Alfred, accountant of Cha Café, the establishment closed on Monday at about 10:15pm and that there was light inside when the burglary happened.
On Sunday morning, an employee of Nami Restaurant discovered that the establishment had also been burglarized and about $200 in customers’ tips placed in a drawer and an iPhone were stolen. The iPhone belongs to the part-owner of the restaurant.
The suspect managed to enter the establishment through the back door. The burglar broke a small window on the door and reached inside for the lock.
An employee of Nami Restaurant said a burglar tried to break into the restaurant again either Monday night or early yesterday morning, but failed to open the backdoor’s second lock that they installed because of the first incident.
