DEKALB COUNTY, GA — They smashed, but they couldn’t grab.
Wednesday morning, a DeKalb County beauty supply store reopened, two days after a pair of would-be thieves broke in with a U-Haul truck.
“It looks disastrous,” says businessman Peter Chi.
Security video shows two hooded men arrive around 4:45 a.m. Monday morning at C&C Beauty and Beyond on the 2000 block of Candler Road. After peering into the store, the driver reverses the truck and then rams it into the store, smashing the front door and a lot of windows. One tried climbing into the wreckage of wood, glass, and steel bars. Looking at the damage, the men seem dissatisfied, so the driver gets behind the wheel to reverse-ram it again.
About 30 seconds after trying to push through the rubble, the men drive away.
Minutes later, DeKalb County Police says an officer arrived to find the door and windows broken but the security doors still in place.
The store owner, Peter Chi, believes the men were after the store’s ATM.
“One guy was actually directing where to hit the truck, and that’s where the ATM is. The ATM was knocked down,” says Chi.
The pair didn’t make off with the machine or any merchandise, but they did make a mess.
“They were trying to come in, but there was too much debris in front,” says Chi.
Chi says the break-in is costing him thousands of dollars in repairs, which he estimates will take two to three weeks to complete. He quickly had plywood installed in place of the broken plate glass front.
The owner of eight C&C stores around metro Atlanta, Chi credits his faith with keeping him optimistic.
“You believe in Jesus, and he will take care of us,” he says.
He’s been in the beauty supply business for 35 years, and hopes this failed crime will give pause to the unsuccessful burglars.
“I really wish they’d think twice before they do such stupid things like this,” says Chi, “because it’s really destroying the community and innocent people, honest people trying to make a living out of this.”
DKPD says that anyone with information can send an anonymous tip through the free DeKalb County PD (Tip411) app or by texting “DKPD” to 847411, followed by the tip.
