Surveillance footage shows suspects breaking into multiple businesses in north San Antonio and Castle Hills early Sunday, as police continue their investigations.
SAN ANTONIO — Over and over again early Sunday morning, a group of burglary suspects were caught on surveillance cameras breaking into small businesses across north San Antonio and Castle Hills.
Most of the crimes were between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m.
In Castle Hills, the targets included one nail salon and one hair salon on West Avenue and another nail salon and spa on Blanco Road.
In San Antonio, three small shops on Wurzbach were hit, but only two of them were active businesses. The third store front that had a glass entry door shattered has been closed for some time.
There is video of one thief smashing the glass door of a barber shop and racing straight back to the office area of the shop in the rear of the store.
The owner of the business said he would prefer to remain anonymous because he fears retaliation but the video is clear.
The suspect appears to be tall and thin and wearing a gray hoodie and medium to dark slacks. The shoes are bright white in the dark and it appears as if the person is using a cell phone to navigate to the back of the store. Crashing can be heard as the suspect grabs a drawer and runs out the exit.
The hooded suspect then returned with two associates.
All three apparently were able to break through an interior glass door and the owner of the shop said they are clearly seen making a break for the front door with the cash drawer in hand.
Oddly, the owner said, he was able to recover some of his property when another victim found the material and called him about the discovery.
The owner said the damage to the building was more expensive than any small amount of money that may have been inside the store and he will also have a medical bill because he said he needed stitches after cutting his hand during a cleanup effort.
A few doors down, employees of a nail salon were notified by a customer arriving for an appointment that their front glass door had also been shattered. They said at first they didn’t believe anything had been stolen but they later found a binder in the parking lot with their inventory lists. One employee said the binder had no monetary value but the thought of someone rifling through their property was frightening.
The same sentiment was expressed at the H3 Salon on West Avenue where one manager said salons should be places of peace and renewal, not fear.
Andres Rios said “You’re taking away an environment that should feel safe. Now you’re causing doubt and you’re causing fear. For what reason?”
When they learned that there were multiple victims hit during the same event, Rios said,” It was shock. Right? I was. Wow. The fact that it is more than one is mind boggling!”
Rios said he hopes people will pay careful attention to the surveillance video and help out all the victims with clues.
“Do the crime, do the time! I hope they get caught because it’s not just one business. It’s multiples. It’s families and you’re taking food out of people’s mouths!” Rios said emphatically.
There was no cash to steal in the business, but the loss has been felt.
“These people come in they smash our doors, smash our glass.! They make a mess inside and for what? We’re small businesses you know! We’re not major corporations,” Rios said, adding “I don’t think the people understand the gravity of what they’ve done!”
Both SAPD and Castle Hills Police have open cases.
The non-emergency number for San Antonio is 210-207-SAPD for anyone who might have clues.
The number for Castle Hills Police is 210-342-2341.