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WATCH: California Bakery Owner Says He Suffered $70k Damage From Street Takeover Looters

"This has never happened to us before."

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Jan 8, 2024 DailyWire.com

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Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

COMPTON, CA - JANUARY 4, 2024 - Ruben Ramirez, 51, a member of the family that owns Ruben's Bakery & Mexican Food Inc, is upset over the recent break-in and robbery at the family-run business in Compton on January 4, 2024. "It makes me mad, sad," Ramirez said. "We're holding up as good as we can. When your hands are tied what can you do," he concluded. The store was left ransacked after a street takeover on Tuesday. The mob ran a car through its doors, then stole cash registers and merchandise. No one was hurt, but the family is left devastated with the aftermath. The family lost around $2,000 in cash and about $70 to $80,000 in damage to the store which has been in business for 48 years. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) — Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

The owner of the Compton bakery that was looted by a group of more than 100 people — and had a car crashed into it — last week says his business suffered $70,000 in damage.

Ruben Ramirez Jr., the son of Mexican immigrants and the owner of Ruben’s Bakery & Mexican Food told Fox News that his family is trying to rebuild after the incident.

WATCH:
Owner of the Compton bakery that was looted in several viral videos, Ruben Ramirez, joins @SandraSmithFox to detail what happened, his confusion over why he was targeted and who these looters were, and his efforts to rebuild his store for his community. #AmericaReports pic.twitter.com/5cpYaaKFCN
— America Reports (@AmericaRpts) January 5, 2024

“This has never happened to us before. We’ve seen ‘street takeovers’ in the area, but it’s never anything like this,” Ramirez said.

A group of more than 100 looters crashed a car into Ruben’s Bakery and looted the store in the dead of night on Tuesday, after an illegal street takeover, which began at 3 a.m. about a mile away.

Someone backed a white Kia through the front doors of the bakery, ramming it into the store twice as a large group crowded around nearby, security footage shows.

Once inside, the looters, wearing masks or pulling their hoods over their faces, can be seen grabbing as much as they can from the store, jumping on counters, and pushing past each other before fleeing. Some go straight for the cash register.

Photos from the aftermath show the store ransacked with open food containers lying on the ground. A metal-grated window appears to have been destroyed by the car, and shattered glass lies on the ground as well.

Among the items stolen were meat scales, meat, groceries, and lotto tickets, according to Captain Melissa Ramirez of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.

“The worst is seeing my parents, who built something for over 48 years, to almost lose it because of this violence that’s going on right now. These street takeovers in Compton have been getting worse and worse, and I’m not the only one frustrated. My neighbors here are telling me the same thing,” the bakery owner said.

“I do hope they see justice, but more than anything I just want my business back. I want to be able to serve the community how we’ve been doing it for all these years and make everybody happy with our food,” Ramirez said.

Just before the looting incident, police had been called twice about a car on fire and the street takeover outside the bakery.

No arrests appear to have been made related to the looting so far.

Street takeovers have been an ongoing problem in the Los Angeles area.

Retail theft has also been a problem plaguing the Los Angeles area, especially organized mobs of thieves who descend on stores.

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