Tony Kurzweil and Carlos Herrera
2 days ago
Police are searching for a gang of robbers who hit three San Fernando Valley locations belonging to the same Italian restaurant chain within the space of an hour Wednesday morning.
The short-lived crime spree began around 3 a.m. when surveillance footage showed the suspect arriving in a dark sedan at a Maria's Italian Kitchen location in Encino.
Three masked and hooded thieves got out of a car with crowbars, broke into the business and stole a safe full of cash from the restaurant's office.
Operations manager Peggy Gonzalez told KTLA that she was at the restaurant when the alarm went off, and while she was waiting for police, she got a call that the alarm had gone off at the Woodland Hills location reporting a break-in.
Gonzalez said the perpetrators fled without stealing anything but did break a glass door and cause damage to an office area.
About 15 minutes later, she got another call that there had also been an intruder at a restaurant in Sherman Oaks.
Los Angeles Police are investigating the thefts and believe both incidents involve the same suspect.
Madeline Alfano, the chain's owner, said most of her stores have gone cashless since the pandemic began, so the culprits probably wouldn't have made off with a lot of cash, but the damage could be significant.
Alfano also said he would like to go completely cashless to make his restaurant less attractive to robbers, but a motion being considered by the city of Los Angeles to ban cashless businesses may make that impossible.
“If there's no cash, there's no reason for someone to break into a business,” Alfano said.
Supporters of a ban on cashless businesses say the measure will exclude people who cannot obtain bank accounts or are denied access to credit from the market.
